


Danwei

by brunettachoppa687, TTICSY (phantomofthefandoms)



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Danny also suffers from some mild depression and insecurity issues, Danny is a little underaged, M/M, Minor Violence, Mulan AU, and humor, but for the historical setting, just a heads up, not really - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-21
Updated: 2015-09-23
Packaged: 2018-04-10 13:03:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 64,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4393019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brunettachoppa687/pseuds/brunettachoppa687, https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomofthefandoms/pseuds/TTICSY
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Ancient China, a land full of magic and mystery and myth.  A land of flowers bloomed in adversity, of pride and enemies and hate, of sacrifice and friendship and love.  However, this tale is no myth, for it did happen once…"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> "Danwei" is a DP/Mulan au. This IS pompous pep, and the E rating is for violence and future smut~

Ancient China, a land full of magic and mystery and myth.  A land of flowers bloomed in adversity, of pride and enemies and hate, of sacrifice and friendship and love.  However, this tale is no myth, for it did happen once…

A long, long time ago…

There once was a grand emperor, Emperor Clockwork, who ruled over all of China.  He was old and wise and under his rule, China prospered.  While the Emperor had very little family left these days, he did have one heir, his grandson, the young Danwei -- or “Danny,” as his friends and family called him.

However, the boy was no ruler.  Clockwork knew he would make a wonderful ruler one day, if only he could find a figurehead and protector for the boy.  But while many suitors had come with many a lovely man or woman, Danny was never able to please the matchmaker enough to find himself a match.

He was a smart child, clever and resourceful.  But Danny was locked away in the palace, always dressed in black robes from head to toe, so that no one but his grandfather may see him.  And it was here he grew up.  No one ever laid eyes on the child that lived under the Emperor’s protection, for it was rumored the boy had been born half dead, a living spirit.  He had skin as pale as milk, hair as white as fallen snow, and blue eyes that glittered like the brightest stars.  He was beautiful.  But only the Emperor knew such an omen could either mean the destruction of China, or be its miracle.

Nonetheless, loneliness was how Danny spent his days.  Lessons with the generals and councilmen, talks with his grandfather, companionship with his three older cousins, and failed attempts to find a spouse.  For awhile, it felt like an endless cycle, never to be broken…

Until one morning, when Danny was sitting demurely in his chambers, running his soft, lily-white hands over the pages of a book -- when suddenly there was a knock on the door.

Danny straightened his back, closing the book gently.  “Come in...”

The door opened to admit Vladimir Masters -- a foreign man from the north, with blue eyes as dark and stormy as a hurricane-stricken sea -- one of Emperor Clockwork’s generals.  He was one of the most out-of-place people in the palace, with long, silver hair, cutting cheekbones, and a heavy, powerful jaw; the marks of his homeland.  Many people thought him strange-looking or ugly, but Danny had thought the older man handsome.  He often wondered about the land such a man could come from…

Vladimir bowed to the young Chinese prince and straightened.  “Something has happened outside the palace, my prince,” he informed Danny.  “I’ve come to watch your door.  Pay me no mind.”

Beneath the dark robes, young Danny blushed, ducking his head in a polite bow.  The general was a kind man, strong and wise.  He had actually been one of Danny’s tutors in the past years, teaching him the art of strategy and warfare.  He had great patience and charm…

And Vlad had never even seen his eyes, let alone his face.  No one had…

“Thank you, General Masters...”  Danny spoke softly, placing his hands in his lap.  “I’m sure there are far more important things you could be doing, than simply protecting me… so thank you.”

“You’re welcome…”

The general glanced around him, a keen eye on the other entrances to the young prince’s room.  “I certainly hope you are not in danger, my prince…” he murmured.

Danny simply nodded, sighing softly.  Ever since he was a child, he had ALWAYS been in danger of some sort.  Whether it be sickness or advisors or assassins…  it was truly a never ending cycle and Danny was sick of it all.  ANOTHER reason why he had begged his grandfather to allow him to learn self defense.  The boy was lucky his older cousins sided with him, even if it DID mean they were the ones to teach him what they knew…

It was better than nothing.

“You should be protecting my grandfather,”  Danny murmured, head down.  “He is more important.  I am nothing more then a spirit, it is the Emperor that needs your strength…”

“The Emperor has dozens of guards, your majesty,” Vladimir murmured, bowing his head.  It was forbidden -- not by law, but by an unspoken tradition -- to lay eyes on the prince.  Rumors had circled the palace like a cloud of foul smoke ever since the prince had been born; as a foreigner, he tried to honor such traditions, even if they made no sense to him.  “I asked to go to you.  You are far more important than you have been led to believe.”

Danny’s eyes twinkled in amusement.  “You have never been one for superstition, have you?”

He sighed, reaching down to pick up his book once more.  “Still, there is always a small grain of truth to every story.  But, I thank you for the kind words.”

Vlad frowned, glaring at the floor.  It was hardly polite to snap at a prince, but…

Suddenly, a faint war cry sounded in the distance.

Danny dropped his book, standing up quickly in alarm.  He backed away from the door, eyes wide.  

“Did… did they really get inside the palace?”  he asked in slight distress, voice hushed.

Vlad loosened his sword and put his back to the prince.  “It was a small party of huns, they came to test the walls,” he told him.  “Stay calm and stay behind me.”

Danny blinked at the man’s broad back, then his eyes narrowed in determination, nodding silently.  He reached into his robes and pulled out a blade tipped fan, a gift from his cousins.  He clutched it tight, hiding it inside his sleeves, as he came to stand closer to the general.

“At your command, general.”

Vlad glanced at the young man, stunned for a moment -- then he nodded approvingly at the boy’s iron expression.  He hesitated, then his brows furrowed as he faced the front again.  The cries of the enemy and the clang of spears drew closer and closer as the minutes passed.  Soon, they could hear words exchanged in rough voices.  

He swore and unsheathed his blade; they weren’t making the most pleasant of plans.  “Hide, your majesty,” he growled.

Danny did as ordered, hiking up his robes and dashing away on light feet towards a small closet on the other side of the room.  He blew out the candles as he went, casting the far side of the room into darkness before sliding the small door shut, ducking down behind a curtain of fabric.  He clicked open his fan and pressed himself tight to the other wall, prepared to fight if he needed to…

Still, for all his determination and courage, his hands still shook in fright.  He had been told about the huns, about their tyrannical leader… he had no desire to be found, not by them…

SLAM!

The sound of doors crashing open was followed immediately by a roar and a clash of blades.  Metal rang out -- then the sound of two bodies falling.  Heavy footfalls thundered in; Danny heard three, four, six yells of outrage, and blades shrieking past each other.  More bodies fell, but even more came in!

His pale white hands clenched tight and he pressed back against the wall in a vain attempt to stop his shaking.  So many… there were so many of them!  How had they all gotten in?!

Suddenly, there was a whizz of splitting air.

A harsh thump struck Danny’s ears.  “AH!” Vlad yelled in pain.  The prince heard the man’s knees hit the ground.

The boy’s hand came to his covered mouth, stifling the frightened gasp that threatened to give him away.  He hastily stood, hand reaching for the door, desperately wishing to go out there, to help the general, but he knew there was little he could do…

He couldn’t stay here.  He needed to escape, or Vladimir’s pain would be for naught.  He whirled around to the far wall of his closet, feeling along the thin wood till he felt a faint break in the paneling.  With a well placed push, Danny slid through the small trap door and into one of the palace halls.  He shut the panel behind him, just when he heard those heavy footsteps reach the closet.

Without a moment of hesitation, Danny ran.  He needed to get help, find soldiers.  Someone had to help the general!

“STOP!”

Danny didn’t have to look back to know there were huns following him.  That meant Vladimir--!

No!  No, he couldn’t afford to think like that!

The prince dashed around the corner, stumbling on his long black robes, and fled down another corridor.  His heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest!  No, no, this couldn’t be happening!  The huns weren’t supposed to be able to get into to the palace--!

Suddenly, as Danny rounded the corner, he was struck on the skull.

The prince fell to the floor.  Everything went black.

 

~*~*~

 

Darkness surrounded Danny… cold and hard.  Everything ached… His head hurt…

The prince moaned and struggled to open his eyes.  Slowly, the black fog seemed to clear -- and Danny found himself staring down at an expanse of trampled snow, dirtied by huge hoofprints and… blood.  A hard surface dug into his stomach, bouncing his slender body up and down.  

The little prince struggled to move, finding his hands tied with thick rope in front of him.  He gasped as he was harshly jostled around, his body shivering from the cold that easily penetrated through the thin layers of his robes.  

His brows furrowed and he squirmed in distress for a moment, before finally realizing what had happened.  He had been captured.

Danny’s eyes blew wide as he began to struggle in earnest, only to be silenced with a harsh slap to the back of his head.  He blinked past the pain, trying his best to see past his sheer robes at the bleary world around him.  He froze, as he saw the shine of many fires burn through the snow.  They were approaching a large camp…

How long had he been unconscious?!  

The horse Danny was slung over trotted down into the camp.  Night was falling, and in the flickering light of the many bonfires, the young prince could barely see where they were going.  

They finally stopped next to a cage constructed of rough pine logs.  Two big huns approached, scowling thunderously, and yanked Danny off the horse.  The boy cried out as they took hold of him, fighting and struggling against them with all his might.  But he was so small compared to them that he just couldn’t break free…

He balked at the sight of the cage they were leading him to.  “N-no!  Let go of m-me!”

“A feisty one, huh?” one of the men sneered.  “Let’s get a look at her face!”

A brutish hand grabbed hold of the cloth over Danny’s head.

“No!  You can’t--!”  

The robes were torn from Danny’s head, his long white hair coming loose from its bun and tumbling down his shoulders, framing an almost equally pale face.  Fierce blue eyes glared up at the stunned hun before him, for even though the prince was known for his beauty, he was CLEARLY male.

A dark scowl crossed Danny’s face, anger at being so blatantly touched overcoming his fears.  “I curse you, all of you…!”

The man blinked… then sneered again.  “A BOY.  Looks like that general was even more of a FREAK than he looked!”

His friend punched him.  “Hey!  Keep those kind of things to yourself as long as you’re under Lord Pariah,” he hissed.  “If you don’t want the creepy little spirit, we know someone who does.”

Danny swallowed thickly, not so sheltered that he didn’t understand what they were talking about.  Still, they gave him an idea.

A very dangerous idea, but it was his only chance.

He straightened his spine, holding his head high as he forced his body to cease its shaking.  “I demand to speak with Lord Pariah.  It is in my right.”

“Your right as WHAT, boy?”

Danny glowered.  “As the Prince of China, grandson of Emperor Clockwork…”

The first man snorted and looked at his friend.  “Sure, and I am the king of the Mongols!” he laughed.  “Hahaha--!”

Suddenly, a huge shadow fell over them.

The two huns stared up with wide eyes.  Danny followed their gaze, eyes widening as he spotted the largest man he had ever seen.  He towered above them with a head full of shaggy hair and a thick braided beard.  He had a scar over one eye and a patch over the other, making him even more fearsome than Danny could have ever imagined.  He wore spiked armor over his shoulders and arms, a fur hood and cape trailing down his back.  Unlike the other huns, this man actually had very little on his upper body, instead showing off his scarred and powerful muscle, seemingly unaffected by the cold.

If Danny had had any doubt who this man was, the large jagged blade strapped across his back, made his identity very clear…

Pariah Dark, King of the Huns…

“This… CHILD.”

Danny recoiled instinctively as the booming voice of the enormous hun rolled over him.  The two men holding him seemed to have no less of a reaction; their hands tightened around the prince, as if now they were scared to let him get away.  

Pariah’s boots crunched through the snow, and suddenly those hands were gone, only to be replaced by a huge one placed just so around the scruff of Danny’s neck.  The boy gasped, hands going back to that powerful wrist -- as if he could keep the enormous hun from breaking his spine like a toothpick.  

Pariah turned Danny around, squinting into his young face.  “This child is the pale spirit…” he boomed.  “He does not lie.”

Danny swallowed heavily, past his suddenly dry throat.  He tried to hold his head up high, tried to meet the monstrous huns gaze… but his shaking form gave his fear away.

“I… I do not lie…”

He did not have to act much to seem meek, weak.  For once, his soft appearance worked to his advantage, and he prayed that he could keep the act up long enough to… to…

In all honesty, he wasn’t sure WHAT he would do…

“Will… will you speak with me…?”  the prince breathed, head down.  “I do not wish to die…”

“Of course you do not,” Pariah growled.  “Only a fool would wish that.”

He straightened -- hand still firm around Danny’s scruff -- and pushed him along.  “Continue your work!” he barked at the two other men.  They scrambled to obey as their leader dragged the prince towards his tent.  “Speak then, boy.  While I decide you should still have your tongue.”

Danny trembled, keeping his eyes down.  His hand reached into his robe’s sleeves, seemingly to massage his tied wrists.  His fingers grasped the handle of his bladed fan, deftly slicing away a single rope.  Now, his hands still seemed tied, but with one swift tug, he will be free… he just needed to keep Pariah occupied until they were far enough away from the other huns for him to act.  The closer they drew to Pariah’s tent… the closer to the edge of the camp Danny became.  

“I-I… I can get y-you into the palace?  U-undetected?”

His trembles of adrenaline looked like he was shaking in fear as he continued to talk.  “You… you can use me against my grandfather… and with m-me… by your side… China will follow you more willingly… if… if…”

He squeezed his eyes shut, swallowing past the bile in his throat.  “You have the prince of China… you… know what that will mean… to the people…”

“Any prince that would even make such an offer is not worthy of the royal blood that flows through his veins, CHILD,” Pariah hissed.  The look of his face was that of pure revulsion; he didn’t even look down at Danny.  “I will not kill you.  Not yet.  Not until I have used your body, broken you, and captured your pitiful grandfather in the flaming wreckage of his own palace.”

He pulled aside the flap of his tent.  “Only THEN will I kill you, if only so he can watch!”

The moment Danny stepped inside the quiet, empty tent, did the meek expression change to one of determination and rage.  “And any leader should have known better then to judge a man’s strength by his pretty face, and prettier WORDS!”

In a graceful, but unpracticed move, Danny spun around on his the ball of his feet, catching Pariah off guard.  His robes billowed out around him, concealing his hands as they broke free from their binds, snapped open the sharp bladed fan, and LUNGED.

The blade slashed deep into Pariah’s chest, causing the man to roar in outrage as blood spilled down his front.  

The little prince snarled and sliced at him again before jumping back, out of his reach.  “And if you really thought, for one moment, I would just hand over myself and CHINA, to a man like YOU… then it is YOU who is the fool!”

Danny quickly turned and ran to the back of the tent, slicing through the thick canvas and ran out into the snow.  He knew Pariah would be close behind, even with the fresh wound stinging in the winter air.  But Danny was fast, and he only needed a single moment's head start...

“GET HIM!  GET THE SPIRIT!  DON’T LET HIM GET AWAY!!”

He darted around tents and skirted the edge of the camp, confused and angry huns responding to Pariah’s rageful commands as they began running around, looking for the runaway prince.  When the coast was clear, he ran over to where the horses were coraled, slicing off the rope and pulling open the crudely made fence.  He tore off the outer layer of his pitch black robes and tied them around one stallion's neck, slapping its flank to send it hurtling forward.  The rest of the horses responded in kind and the camp erupted into chaos as the horses fled in every which way, the stolen horses heading home…

And in the midst of the chaos, one small, cold boy ran into the dark night, away from the camp and away from the palace and the city…

It was no longer safe there.  His home was compromised.

Danny hugged himself as he forged through the snow.  The flames of the hun camp grew fainter and fainter behind him, until all the noise was gone, and the starlight and the chill were his only companions.  Did he know where he was going?  Was the general that had tried to protect him even still alive…?

He couldn’t think like that… no.  Vlad was strong, stronger than any man he had ever met.  He HAD to be alive.  He had to be…

South.  He needed to go south.  Vladimir once told him his camp was stationed by the river, far from the huns’ known warpath, were the men could train and prepare with speed and efficiency.  The army was large, new men recently having joined less than a month ago.  Vlad had been so proud of his men’s progress…

Yes, that’s where he would be safe.  He just had to get there… he just had to keep walking…

He looked up at the stars, quickly finding his way, and turned to head south.  Just keep walking…

Don’t give up…  never…

“Never…”

 


	2. Chapter Two

_Don’t give up…  never…_

_“Never…”_

 

_~*~*~_

 

Unfortunately, the journey south would be far more perilous than even Danny had guessed.  Blizzards and cold gnawed at the boy.  Hunger – something the prince had rarely known in such extremes – weakened him.  Small rabbits and squirrels were the only things he could catch; fish swam in streams frozen over, taunting him.  And still, he made his way south… eyes fixed on the snow in front of him.  One foot… in front of the other…

It took seven days for a pair of Chinese soldiers to find him.  They were simply scouting the perimeter, and both had been shocked speechless to see what looked like a spirit of the snow swaying towards them, stumbling over his own feet.  

He fell to his knees before them, head lulling back.  “P-please… I n-need to see… V-V-Vladimir… please…”

He swayed dangerously.  “H-help me…”

Then he fell unconscious into the snow, still as stone.

“Oh my–!”

One of them – a big, broad shouldered man with lots of soft muscle – rushed over to the pale-haired boy, the other lingering behind.  “Tucker, help me!  He’s like a block of ice!” the big one said, pulling Danny’s arm over his shoulders.

“I don’t know, Kwan, did you see the way he–?!”

“This is no time for your superstitions, come on!  Didn’t he say something about General Vladimir?”

 

~*~*~*~

 

“Mnn… “

Danny groaned softly, rolling over weakly as he burrowed deeper into the warmth that surrounded him.  He was so warm…

Wait…  wasn’t he JUST in the snow??

Blearily, Danny blinked open his tired blue eyes, looking around the softly lit tent.  Brows furrowing, he slowly sat up, wincing as he stiff muscles protested against the movement.  As his eyes adjusted to the light, he was finally able to look down at the soft palate he laid on, covered in a sheet and fur blanket…

And nothing else.

A bright flush covered his cheeks, a hand pulling the covers up to his chin while another, shaky hand, reached up to run through his long snowy hair.  “Wh-where… where am I?”

Suddenly, a tall older man opened the flap to the tent.  He had darker skin and a spiff salt and pepper mustache, not completely out of shape, but he had the kind of muscle gained from lifting bodies and heavy boxes rather than actually training, and a belly plump from eating lots of noodles.

He blinked in surprise at the sight of Danny sitting up.  “Oh, you’re finally awake!”

Danny breathed out in obvious relief when he saw the man, sagging against the warm bed.  “O-oh, you’re Chinese!  They didn’t catch me!  Oh, thank goodness…”

He blinked his big eyes up at the man, hands fisted in the covers nervously.  “Please… where am I?”

The man walked over to Danny, and put down his bowl.  He dipped a cloth into the hot water, wrung it out, and placed it on the boy’s forehead.  “You are in General Vladimir’s camp.  Two soldiers brought you in.  Cold as ice, you were.  They said you were asking for him?”

Danny sighed, closing his eyes blissfully as the warmth from the cloth soothed his chilled skin.  He smiled, practically melting into the pallet as all stress and worry left him.  “I made it… I actually made it…”

Suddenly, he sat up, grasping the older man’s wrist desperately.  “Northeast!  The huns are in the northeast, camped out near the base of the mountains!  I-I spotted a few hundred men, maybe more!  Please, you must warn the general!”

The old man patted his knee.  “Young man, that certainly is urgent, but you will have to take it up with him,” he said good-naturedly.  “For now, you should rest.”

Danny shook his head, wincing as the movement only made him dizzy.  He fell back, fighting to keep his eyelids from drooping in weariness.  This was too important!  He couldn’t go to sleep!  “N-no, wait, I must speak with him!  Please!”

“He’s a very busy man.  He speaks with royalty and trains the best of our soldiers, you know~”

Danny actually couldn’t help but laugh at that, blue eyes lit up with amusement as he looked up at the old man.  “Kind sir, did my coloring escape your keen eyes? Who do you know, that was rumored to be born with skin and hair as white as snow, and eyes as blue as the frozen rivers~?”

The man put down his cloth and glanced at Danny, brows delicately raised.

The boy shook his head, sighing forlornly.  “It is far too late now, to abide by my grandfather’s rules, far too late…”

He met the older man’s eyes, chuckling again at the amused, knowing look he saw there.  “And I think you know exactly who I am… and why THIS is where I am most safe… don’t you…”

The middle-aged man patted the boy’s knee again.  “I know why you came here~” he smiled, lowering his voice.  “I do.  It is a safe place for young men like you, hm?  But perhaps it is not best to go around announcing your true identity.”

He took the cloth from Danny’s head and soaked it again.  “Everyone believes the phantom prince is dead.  Killed by Huns.”

Danny nodded, eyes down.  “That… that is for the best.  Let them think that, let the prince return to the spirit world he was born from and let… let me emerge in his place…”

He bit his lip, trying to think.  “The two that brought me here… they saw my skin and hair, but perhaps you can claim it was simply snow and ice?  My body, frozen after being out there for so long…  I… I will need to color my hair.  Dye doesn’t stick in my hair, I would know… but as long as I remain dry, touch it up every morning, I could fool them, stay safe… perhaps I could even be of help, join the army…  but first.”

He met the old man’s eyes again, determined.  “I trust the general.  He is the only one I will tell, the one who can help me, teach me…!  He has never seen my face, but my voice… he will know my voice…”

The man chuckled.  “One might think you have a little crush on the general.  A fine man he is.”

Danny sputtered, blushing brightly.  “Th-that has nothing to d-do with this!”

“Hahaha!  Ahhh, I’m just kidding.”

The mustached man flexed his hands and picked up a mortar, pulling bits of dried herbs and putting them in another bowl.  He started to grind them up.  “My full name is much too long to be convenient, but most of the soldiers just call me Damien for short.  Damien Grey,” he told the boy.  “And what do you suppose your nickname will be?”

Danny frowned.  In all honesty, no one but his family called him Danny… But to be on the safe side…

“Dan… Dan Fenton…  It’s still my name, so I will remember to respond to it, but it’s different and simple enough to not draw any attention.”

He glanced back up at the older man, still a little nervous.  “Will that be enough you think?  The name, and the hair?  I… I want to be a soldier, I want to aid China…”

“Your blue eyes will be noticed by everyone,” Damien admitted, still grinding the herbs.  “But as long as you keep your hair touched up, you should be alright.  I’ll get you the recipe for some hair dye.  You should know how to make it.”

Danny nodded.  “Yes, my cousin Sam showed me once.  We don’t know why the dye doesn’t truly take, but as long as I don’t get my hair wet and can keep it touched up… I should be alright… I hope.”

He looked up at Damien pleadingly.  “But first, please, I need to speak with Vladimir!  He… He got hurt trying to save me, before the huns took me… He… he deserves to know I’m alright!  And he’s the only man I truly trust!”

“I understand that, Dan.  But I am not anyone of importance!” Damien insisted, glancing at him.  “I can point you towards the correct tent, but that is all I can really do.  I can’t announce you or get you an appointment or anything like that.”

“Oh…”

Danny nodded eagerly, smiling.  “W-Well, that’s all I need!  Thank you!”

The little prince struggled to stand up off the pallet, determined to see the general as soon as possible.  “I-I just need something to c-cover my head, till I get there!  Just point me to him!”

Damien sighed and shook his head, but put down the bowl.  “Alright, little lord, but–”

He hesitated, then shrugged.  “Well, I suppose you will see when you get there,” he decided.  The man went over to a pile of rags and fished one out; a long one, along with a set of rough robes.  “Here, you can use these.”

Danny thankfully took the long strip of cloth and the clothes.  He deftly wrapped the rag around his head, face, and shoulders; soon, his hair and lower face were completely covered and the shaking in his legs had stopped.  Once he was clothed as well, Danny looked up at him bright eyes, smiling.  “Thank you, for everything!”

He moved to the tent flap, bouncing on the balls of his feet eagerly.  “Okay, which way do I go?  Is he busy?  Do I need to wait for him to be done with a meeting?  I need to make sure he’s alone…”

Damien chuckled at the boy’s enthusiasm.  “He is usually alone this time of day,” he replied.  “But usually he’s not in his tent.  He’s at the top of the hill, training.”

Danny hesitated, unsure.  “Will… will anyone else be around?  I don’t want anyone else to see me…  I couldn’t bear it if I got him trouble…  Should I just wait in his tent?  I mean…”

“He doesn’t like people watching him.”

Damien gave the boy a little wink.  “I only know where he goes because I take him his tea.”

Danny blinked, surprised.  “Oh!  The green tea he likes?  With ginger and honey and a squeeze of lemon?”

The prince flushed at the look the man gave him.  “W-We have tea a lot, at the palace.  I l-learned how he liked it, it was o-only polite, of course!”

Danny crossed his arms and turned away, pouting a little, before giving Damien a sideways glance.  “Do… do you want me to take it to him?  I mean… to save you the trouble…”

The man smiled.  

He turned his back on the prince, walked over to another table, and picked up a tray with a small, steaming kettle and a cup.  He turned back to Danny, offering it to him with a little bow.  “His tea is a bit late, but I’m sure you will do wonders for him.  Even more so than his tea~”

Danny blushed, taking the tray gingerly.  “S-sure…  So the uh, the hill?”

The doctor chuckled again and pulled back the tent flap, pointing out the hill in question.  Danny nodded his thanks one final time, and then after taking in a deep breath, stepped out into the busy camp.

He kept his head down, clutching the tray tightly as he quickly moved through the camp, only stopping to take a breather once he had reached the foot of the hill.  He looked up, seeing movement at the top, and began his climb.  He wasn’t exactly sure HOW Vlad would take him being there, but Danny knew he could never lie to the man.  No, he trusted him, valued his companionship and wisdom.  If there was anyone that could protect Danny, help turn him into a soldier, it was Vlad…

Then Danny crested the hill, and there he was.

Bare feet moved soundlessly through the snow.  The waning sunlight gleamed off a pale, muscled back and hair silvery white as the moon itself, like night come early, the worn cloth of his pants red as blood on paper.  The powerful soldier moved his body slowly – eyes closed – but a weight seemed to drag at his limbs.  Each movement looked like it took pain and effort… like he had aged twenty years in a week.  

Danny was frozen for a long moment, unable to take his eyes off of the man he had been so sure was terribly hurt or even killed by the huns.  It had only been a little over a week since he had seen the general, but it felt like far longer…

Vlad grew still, his eyes still closed.

After a moment of silence, he sunk out of his stance and walked over to the lone, bare tree that stood atop the hill; Vlad turned his back on the boy, barely even glancing up to take his Chinese changshan – a long shirt, worn and red like his pants – and slipped it on.  

Finally, Danny willed his body to move, and slowly approached the man, lowering his head and placing the tray of tea on a nearby flat rock.  He poured a cup with shaking hands, removing the steeping ginger and spooning in some honey.  He squeezed in the lemon before dropping the wedge into the cup, the scent billowing up with the steam.  

He stepped back then, once the tea was set, and knelt down demurely beside the rock as he silently waited for Vlad to notice him.  His advisors and tutors never taught him this, only his cousins and grandfather understood his desire to serve and please in even the most simplest of fashions.  Danny LIKED making and serving tea, the simple pleasure of helping relieve one’s stress, to be there for them in companionship and see that soft smile when you finally manage to make their favorite tea perfectly.

Danny had only ever done this for his grandfather and his family… but last year, he served another for the first time, sharing that silent companionship with someone outside of his family.  

Vladimir…

“You are trained in these arts.”

Danny startled at the sound of his voice, but kept his head down and simply nodded, suddenly too nervous to reveal himself yet, to even speak.

Vlad turned towards the boy.  He took the cup of tea and straightened.

Three puncture wounds – one closed, two still raw and puckered – stared out at Danny from under the man’s open shirt as he sipped it.  “Ah…” he sighed.  Vlad hesitated, brows furrowing for a moment at the tea…

And then a sad look came over his face.  He fell silent, gazing down at those amber ripples.

Then, Vlad nodded quietly to the boy and sat.  “Were you sent for this purpose?” he asked politely.  “I was not informed that a professional would be making my tea.”

“I was not sent at all.”

The prince’s voice was soft, but it carried clearly through the silence.  “I came here, because I knew I would be safe.”

Vlad froze.

Danny finally raised his head, blue eyes glittering sadly up at the wounded man.  “Safe… with my general…”  

There was a moment of silence…

The general set down his cup of tea and placed it back on the tray – hands trembling.  

“You…”

Slowly, Vlad turned to stare at Danny, like he was seeing a ghost.  “You… can’t be!  I–!”

“It’s okay, Vladimir.  It’s okay.”

Danny reached up and slowly unwrapped the cloth from around his head, revealing unmarred pale skin and soft white hair.  He looked up at Vlad once he had revealed himself, smiling softly.  “I’m so glad you’re alright… I thought you might have died that day.  I’m so happy to be proven wrong.”

He choked on a tiny sob, eyes watering as the last few days finally hit him, and hit him hard.  “Oh, Vladimir…  I was so scared…  I thought… I thought–!”

“Oh GODS, your majesty, I–!”

Vlad fell to one knee, bowing his head in reverence.  “I apologize for my incompetence!  I have no excuses!  I should have protected you, I should have done something!!” he pleaded, his voice shaking.  “I have found myself wishing I had been hurt far worse trying to defend you, my liege, not just struck with those cursed poison arrows…!”

“P-POISON??”

Danny reacted swiftly, shocking his general as he suddenly sprang forward to look at his wounds himself.  “What poison?!  How long have you been recovering?  Was it foxglove??  Anthurium??  How have you been treated?  Have they made you a mountain ashe salve?  Have you suffered from fever or rashes or chills or hallucinations or… or… Oh, Vlad!”

The poor boy clung to Vlad, tears streaming down his face.  “How… how USELESS, could I possibly BE?!  You… You could have DIED and I could do nothing to help!  I ran like a coward and was STILL captured!  I had to resort to… to such FOUL tricks to escape Pariah’s grasp, all while you suffered so…”

Vlad hesitated to touch Danny, eyes wide as he gently pushed the young prince away, as if he feared the boy would disappear if he laid hands on him.  “You shouldn’t, no, I… Please, my prince, don’t do this–”

“Stop it!”  Danny almost screamed, bright blue eyes glaring up at Vlad past his tears.  “Stop!  We are at WAR, and that demon, that monster that rules the huns, he threatened to… to USE me, like nothing more than a yuan geisha!  He planned to break me, then kill me before my own grandfather.  They cared not that I was a prince, and at times like these, neither should you!  I am still a MAN!”

Danny sagged.  “I may be seen as a terrible omen, and there are those at the palace who might feel I have brought this war upon China by simply existing… but I will not sit idly by while my home is attacked.  I will defend it, I will not run!”

He looked back up at Vlad, eyes hard.  “The next time I see Pariah, my aim will be higher and he WILL lose his head from his shoulders!  I will not be some… some… some damsel!  I refuse!”

Throughout Danny’s whole speech, the general refused to meet his prince’s eyes – his gaze cast everywhere but the young man, reverence and regret both powerful and in equal measure.  

“I hate everything that happened in that palace, my liege…”

Vlad swallowed, eyes cast down.  “I owe your family everything.  You do not even want to know the place your grandfather rescued me from… With the last breath in my body, I will defend you, his treasure, your family, this country.  I would raise the palace on my own two shoulders if you asked me to.”

He bowed his head.  “What would you wish of me, majesty?  Ask it, and I swear it will be done.”

Danny squeezed his eyes shut, hiding the pain within them.  He didn’t want Vlad to do this for his grandfather, he wanted Vlad to do it for HIM, because he wanted to help DANNY.  But the prince figured this was all he would get, all Vlad was willing to give him, only able to see Danny as the emperor’s grandson and… nothing more.

“Teach me to fight,” the prince murmured, voice hard.  “Train me as one of your soldiers, teach me how to defend myself and my home so what happened all those days ago will NEVER happen again…”

There was a moment of silence.

“…You wish to join the ranks of the soldiers,” Vlad murmured.

Danny pulled away from Vlad, head down as he moved to one knee and placed his hand over his chest, kneeling before the man in a show of respect that no royal had ever given him.  “Yes, my general.”

He glanced up at him, determined.  “I will disguise myself, no one will know and I couldn’t be safer anywhere else.  I wish to be a soldier and FIGHT.”

His expression softened, became something more pleading.  “Please, Vladimir…”

The general shrank back.  “My lord, don’t kneel before me.  Please…”

“You deserve my respect!”  Danny cried.  “More than anyone, you have EARNED my respect and my LOYALTY!  I am simply a prince because of my BLOOD.  I cannot protect my own home, let alone myself.  I have seen nothing past the palace walls, I am a sheltered CHILD.  I have not earned your respect, but let me TRY!  Let me become someone WORTHY of one day taking the throne!  I need this, Vladimir!”

Danny raised his hands like he wished to clutch at Vlad again, but held himself back, shaking a little in his desperation.  “Please…”

“You HAVE my respect, my lord, I… I did not wish to offend you…”

Vlad swallowed again, keeping his eyes down.  “It might be difficult for me to train you.  I will want to bow before you and apologize for the cruel words and deeds that have been said and done.  However… if you truly wish me to…”

“I DO, Vlad…”  Danny breathed, pale hands clasping in front of himself.  “I need this.  Don’t treat me like a prince, but a MAN.”

A small smile crossed his lips as he sucked in a shaky breath.  “Let me do this, Vlad.  Please, train me!  Let me defend my home!”

“…Very well.”

Vlad nodded.  “You will start in the morning.  Please dye your hair before then so I may have some kind of differentiation with which to associate this… mannerism,” he said.  “I apologize beforehand, I… you will understand tomorrow.  See the supplies distributor, he should get you a tent and show you how to set it up.”

The words spilled from his mouth like he had said them thousands of times to thousands of other men – but it felt wrong hearing them said to the snow.

Danny smiled, shoulders sagging in relief.  “Thank you, Vla– General Masters…”

He stood up on shaky legs, hands still clenched tight in the cloth across his chest, shaking in excitement and exhaustion.  “I will do everything in my power to make sure you don’t regret this.  And please know that I want your cruel words.  I want you to treat me like the others, teach me, train me…  There will be nothing to forgive, for you will be giving me what I want, what I NEED.”

He pulled the cloth back up over his head, smiling at Vlad from beneath the hood.  “You are an amazing man, Vladimir Masters… I hope to make you proud one day…”

Vlad gazed sadly at the snow.  “…You have never needed to prove yourself to me, my prince…” he whispered.  “I have always known you were destined for greatness… and your teacher would be the proudest man in the world, to be able to claim that such an incredible emperor once learned from his works.”

He glanced up at Danny, his dark eyes worshipful.  “I just thought it would never fall to an unworthy person like me.”

Danny shook his head, bending down once more to place a hand against Vlad’s stubbled cheek.  “You are the worthiest…”  he breathed, smiling gently.  “There is no other that I would trust with this, that I respect.  You are the only man I could ever imagine as my teacher.  You taught me strategy, warfare, battle tactics and logic… now, it is time for you to teach me beyond the classroom.”

He pulled back, but still held out his hand in offering, smiling kindly.  “Teach me how to be a man, how to protect and defend my people to the utmost to my abilities.  Help me become MORE, more than just the spirit of the palace…  I want to become the spirit of the PEOPLE.”

Vlad smiled softly and nodded.  “I shall, majesty.”

He took Danny’s hand, standing.  “But do keep in mind, you have a long way to go~” the general said with a smirk.

Danny beamed.  “Oh, I am well aware!  At least I know I’m not starting from the VERY bottom~”

He began to cover his face more, preparing to head back to camp and get settled in, he still had that dye to make after all.  But before he turned to leave, he cast Vlad one more amused glance.  “I did say I knew enough to scar Pariah himself.  Next time, I’m hoping you will have taught me how to do some REAL damage~”

“Like I said, my prince.”

Vlad shed his shirt once more and resumed the position Danny had found him in – looking like he felt a hundred pounds lighter.  “You have a long way to go~”


	3. Chapter Three

Danny quickly returned to camp and snuck back into the infirmary tent.  The doctor had left out all the needed ingredients to make what Danny knew was a strong, black dye.  It was made entirely from plants and minerals, keeping the hair soft and looking nearly natural.  Danny knew this dye actually tended to last nearly a full day on his hair, but he would have to wash it out every night and re-apply it in the morning, or the dye will begin to cake and dry for seemingly no reason.  

His grandfather used to tell him that he was not a curse, nor a bad omen, but in fact a special boy blessed by the spirit world.  He believed this was why Danny could not change his appearance, for the spirits around him made it impossible.

Danny believed it just meant he was even more of a freak then before…

The prince shook away such dark thoughts and quickly began making the dye.  By the time the doctor had returned from his rounds, he found Danny had successfully dyed his hair and pulled it up into a proper soldier’s bun.  The only thing that gave him away to the doctor and Vlad himself, were his bright blue eyes.  Oh boy, he was going to have quite a few love sick soldiers following him around…

Danny turned and smiled at him when he saw the doctor.  “He agreed!  I’m going to be a soldier!  But um… do you know where the distribution tent is?  And is there a place I need to sign up or will Vlad be um, taking care of that?  Do you know what is happening tomorrow?  I don’t want to be caught off guard or ill prepared… oh gods, I’m so nervous…”

Damien patted his shoulder.  “Relax, little lord,” he said.  “A minority of these recruits know more than you do at this point.  Training starts at dawn, and the distribution tent is on the edge of camp.  While you’re at it, why don’t you make a few friends?”

Danny stiffened, blinking big blue eyes up at the doctor.  “Friends…?  You… you think someone here will want to be my friend?  Really?”

The poor boy had indeed been very sheltered, and none truly wished to approach him due to the Emperor’s strict rules and the palace superstitions.  The only ones he had ever called his friends had been his cousins and… and Vladimir…

Damien’s no-nonsense voice snapped him out of his daydream.  “Of course they would!  You seem like a charming young lad,” he said.  He guided the boy back to the entrance.  “Don’t worry, little lord.”

It was hard not to worry, but the prince sighed and nodded nonetheless.  “Thank you…”

Danny waved goodbye to the doctor as he left the tent, hesitating only a moment before slowly walking through the busy camp towards the edge.  The longer he walked, the more nervous he became as more and more soldiers turned to glance at him, curious eyes following his every move.

Oh dear… He really should have asked what the distribution tent even LOOKED like…

“GANGWAY!”

“COMIN’ THROUGH!!”

Two burly soldiers nearly knocked Danny on his rear as they ran past him.  One had black hair and the other had – surprisingly – blonde, but both were very tall and carrying a person between them that resembled more of a walking stick bug than a soldier.  “TUCKER HAD ANOTHER ACCIDENT!” they were guffawing.

“I scraped my KNEE, you idiots, PUT ME DOWN!” the smaller, browner person yelled, squirming to get free.

“OH NO, WE HAVE TO GET HIM TO THE INFIRMARY!”

“MAKE WAY!  HAHAHAHAHA!”

“GUYS!!”

Suddenly, the big, soft one with black hair spotted Danny and stopped on a dime, sending his two friends plummeting nearly head over heels to the ground.  “Oh!” he grinned.  “It’s you!  Are you all right now?”

Danny blinked at the young soldier, confused.  “I-I’m sorry, do I know you…?”

His eyes suddenly widened as he connected the dots, finally recognising the bulky form he had seen in the snow before he’d passed out.  “Oh!  You’re the one who found me!”

He smiled at them, cheeks flushed pink from excitement and shyness.  “I w-was hoping to meet you!  I wanted to thank you, thank you both, for helping me… I was nearly frozen solid…”

“Kwan, quit flirting with the pretty boy and get your ass over here!”

The big man – assumably named Kwan – laughed good-naturedly and waved the blonde over.  “Dash, do you remember that little guy we told you about that I pulled out of the snow?”

Dash furrowed his brows over periwinkle-blue eyes; the man was decidedly the most non-Chinese looking person Danny had ever seen, tall as a house with white skin, skinny legs, and hair the color of fresh corn. “Huh?” he asked, his Chinese clumsy.  “Oh!  Right!  The snow monster thing Tuck wouldn’t shut up about!”

“HE WAS A LOT BIGGER BEFORE!”

“Yeah, sure, he’s about your size, midget!” Dash laughed.  He leaned over Danny, squinting down at him.  “He don’t look so threatening.”

Danny felt a little insulted at that, his eyes narrowing as he glared up at the blonde man.  “Hmmph!  Put something sharp in my hands, and we’ll see how threatening I can be!”

The three boys looked at him in shock, causing him to deflate, losing a bit of his bravado.  “Ah, well… That is to say, I have SOME basic training in the ‘dancing blades’ arts… I’m hoping to learn more here, be of use to–”

“HAHAHAHAHA, DANCING BLADES!  HAHA– mmph!”

Kwan shoved Dash unceremoniously aside with seemingly no effort whatsoever, smiling at a stunned Danny.  “Do forgive him, he is a foreigner,” the big man said.  “He does not know the tradition of courtesy yet, but his brusque charms tend to grow on you~”

Tucker – a skinny, slender boy no older or taller than Danny – walked over to the blue-eyed boy and threw an arm around his shoulders, snorting.  “Yeah!  Dash is kinda like one of those hunting dogs you see in the city!” he grinned snarkily.  “He’s really fast and really strong, loyal to a fault, but he’s not the brightest candle on the porch!”

“Oh YEAH?!” Dash bellowed, tackling Tucker to the ground with a grin.  “I’ll show YOU ‘NOT THE BRIGHTEST CANDLE!’”

“KWAN HEEEEEEEEEELP!”

Kwan laughed at their roughhousing and shook a bewildered Danny’s hand.  “My name is Kwan!” he introduced himself.  “Those two are my best friends, Tucker and Dash!  They have nicknames~”

“Nicknames?  Oh!”  Danny smiled up at Kwan, deciding he liked this big man best so far.  “Mine is Dan!  It’s a pleasure to meet you all!”

He glanced back at the other two’s rough housing, biting his bottom lip in concern.  “I uh… I take it such arts don’t really help in the army, huh?”

He shook his head, a determined look in his eyes.  “No matter!  The more skills I know, the better!  Oh, um… Kwan?”  

He glanced up at the man, smiling sheepishly.  “Do you know where the distribution tent is?  I haven’t gotten my things yet, since I just woke up today and all…”

“Oh, of course!  Follow me!”

Kwan put a hand on Danny’s shoulder and steered him down the opposite way.  “All the tents look the same, but I was practically raised in these kinds of camps!  I can usually guess accurately on where to find things, oh– DASH!”

“YEAH?”

“TRAINING STARTS TOMORROW AT DAWN!  DON’T FORGET!”

“How could I forget?!” Dash called back, keeping Tucker in a friendly headlock.  “You always come to wake me up, wifey!”

Kwan laughed and continued on his way.  “That Dash.  He’s such a prankster~”

Danny raised a brow at their exchange, looking troubled.  “‘Wifey’?  Is he always like that?  I mean, he’s not trying to make fun of you, is he?  My grandfather made sure that everyone viewed love equally!  I know he’s foreign, surely he doesn’t still believe…”

“Oh, no no.  Dash is harmless~” Kwan replied, smiling.  “He talks to everyone like that, especially if he thinks of you as his friend.”

“Oh?  He is like my cousins then…”  Danny mused, relaxing.  “They tease and taint, have tongues like snakes, but they tease those they love the most…”

The boy sighed, looking around the large camp.  “How long have you three been here?  General Masters’s army is… actually bigger than I even suspected.  I mean, I thought the recruitment period was long over?”

“Oh goodness, you must have lived very far out in the country…” Kwan murmured.

He blinked, then glanced at Danny and bowed slightly.  “Oh, forgive me!  It’s just that a significant amount of these troops came in within the past week,” he told him.  “You see, there was an attack on the palace, and a member of the royal family was killed.  Here we are.”

The big boy tugged Danny over to a large canvas tent.  The men there quickly took the blue-eyed boy’s measurements, handed him two sets of training clothes, gave him a spot assignment on the edge of camp, and shoved a bedroll into his hands.  Kwan carried the folded-up tent all the way there.  “Anywho,” he continued as he helped Danny to set it up, “when word reached the rest of China, everyone was outraged.  Even more young men came to offer their services.  Tucker was one of them.  Dash and I were already here.”

Danny actually fumbled with his side of the tent, nearly knocking it over in his shock.  He turned to blink big eyes at Kwan, face pale and unbelieving.  “More… more came because… because…”

He shook his head, not truly willing to believe that men would join the army simply because the phantom prince had died.  No, surely not, Danny had been led to believe that nearly no one knew or cared much for the prince, his tutors had all but DRILLED that into his head.  He was unwanted, a bad omen!  Surely… surely there was a mistake.

“Do um… do you know who died?  Was it one of the princesses?  An official?”

“I believe it was that one youngest prince,” Kwan replied, brows furrowed at a particular stitch in the fabric.  “There were always the superstitious old biddies that thought he was some kind of curse, but he was still a royal.  No one kills our royals.  No one.”

His usually warm black eyes went cold and hard.  “Especially not hun scum like Pariah Dark.”

Danny turned away quickly, focusing on the tent in order to hide his suddenly wet eyes.  The people… HIS people… actually cared.  He DID mean something to them.  And he would prove himself, even now.  He would make sure of it…

The prince quickly dried his eyes and finished setting up the tent, stowing his belongings inside, then turned back to Kwan with a small smile.  “Thank you for your help, I don’t think I would have gotten everything set up so quickly without you.”

Kwan gave a little bow.  “Oh, you’re welcome!  You know, you are very articulate and polite~”

Danny flushed, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.  “Oh, um… thank you?”

“If I may, might I ask where you are from?” the big boy asked.  He looked concernedly at Danny.  “I admit, I’ve been dying of curiousity to know how in the world you got here on foot in the middle of a snowstorm.  What happened?”

Danny panicked for a moment.  He had never been a good liar, EVER, and he knew if he started now things would get out of control and he would never be able to keep his stories straight!  So… he did the only thing he could think of.

He told the truth, to a degree.

“I’m um… I’m actually from the city.  I mean, I’m sure you could tell I wasn’t a farmer… I don’t quite have the build for it…”  he murmured, his eyes cast down, fingers twisting into his shirt nervously.  “I was meant to join the other troops coming here last week but… I was captured during the Hun invasion.  It’s why I… I didn’t know about the prince.”

He shrugged, even though he couldn’t quite erase the troubled expression on his face.  “They thought I was a woman, which is why they kept me alive… and when they learned I was a boy… well, it seemed Pariah was not… picky…”

“Hun scum…” Kwan spat.

He cracked his knuckles.  “I’m glad you got away… Those MONSTERS took my sister right out of her bed…” he whispered, a dark look in his eyes.  “…I won’t let that happen to anyone else, man or woman.  It’s why I came here.  It’s why I belong here.”

Danny’s eyes were wide as his head whipped back up to look at Kwan.  “Your… your SISTER??  Oh, Kwan… I…”

The prince shook his head, knowing that the last thing Kwan would want is pitying words.  They did no good here.  So instead, he gave the older boy a wicked smile.

“Then… you will be happy to know that before I escaped, I managed to add another scar to Pariah’s collection…”

He reached into his sleeve and pulled out his fan, a little battered from the storm, but still intact.  He snapped it open, revealing the sharp blade tips of the delicate looking instrument.  “He was too foolish to look past a pretty face…  too bad I failed to aim LOWER…”

Kwan laughed a bit at that.  Danny could tell he didn’t really believe him, but a little of his old warmth returned nonetheless.  “Yes, well… I’m glad you’re alright, at least.”

He bowed to Danny again.  “I hope we can be friends.”

The little green fan fluttered anxiously, betraying Danny’s surprise.  “F-friends?”  he breathed, before his face split with a beaming smile.  “Yes!  Yes, I’d very much like to be your friend!”

“That’s great!”

“KWAN, HEADS UP!”

A wooden ball clocked the big Chinese boy on the back of the head.  Kwan frowned and looked around, rubbing the spot where it had hit him.  “Dash, that was irresponsible.  Someone could have gotten hurt.”

“You’re just mad cuz I caught you FLIRTINGGGG~!”

Kwan snorted.  “Oh, you.”

He bowed again to Danny.  “I’ll see you for morning drills, then!  Good night.”

Danny quickly bowed in return, unable to stop himself from smiling like a fool.  “Oh, yes, good night!”

The boy watched the others walk away, chattering on over this and that, before he slunk into his tent with a sigh.  A friend… he had a friend!

He fell onto his little bedroll with a happy sound, rolling about excitedly.  This was it, his chance!  Vlad would teach him how to fight, how to defend his people, and now he had an actual FRIEND, who liked him for himself, not for his title or blood.  Everything was amazing, wonderful!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrnglrrrr…

//Well, it will be once I get some food… and sleep…//

With that thought in mind, Danny left his shelter and quickly found the food tent, receiving an apple and some bread since he missed dinner.  He ate quickly, and once he was sure everyone was turning in for the night, he grabbed a change of clothes and moved to the river.  He just needed to wash up, as well as wash the dye from his hair so he could start fresh in the morning.  He still had the dark cloth that Damien had given him, he could wrap his wet hair in that and sleep in it, so no one would walk in and see.

He looked around cautiously, before stripping down and diving into the cold water.  He broke the surface with a shiver, quickly scrubbing the dye out of his snowy white hair, before beginning to scrub at his own body.  He suspected the doctor had bathed him at least once while he was unconscious, but Danny knew he would feel much better after he did it himself.

He shook slightly, running a hand through his wet hair.  “Gods… it’s really cold…”

Suddenly, there was a quiet splash from the other side of the reeds.  

Danny reacted with a small yelp, sinking further into the water.  Oh no, was there someone, or something in there?  He knew he should have been more careful!  He ducked down lower, keeping his eyes on the reeds as he slowly drifted back towards the shore…

But then, he spotted a gleam of silver hair.

Danny stopped, struck dumb as he realised exactly who was in the river with him.  

General Vladimir…

A dark blush spread across his cheeks as he watched Vlad swim further out from the reeds, his long hair down and shining like starlight beneath the heavy moon.  His tanned, muscular body rippled as he moved, strength visible from every angle.

Oh… he was so handsome…

“Not bad, huh?” came a little whisper.

Danny’s feet practically went right out from under him as he twisted around suddenly, eyes wide and frightened.  He dropped lower into the water as he saw Kwan’s friend, Dash, wading in the water not far from him.  Oh no… oh no!

“Wh-what… y-y-you… I… oh no….”

He sunk further into the water, about ready to drown himself in mortification and despair.  One day, he didn’t even last one DAY before someone caught him!

Dash snorted and swam closer, giving Danny a little slap on the back of his snowy white head.  “Calm down, kid, I’ve seen dicks before,” he whispered, grinning mischievously.  He raised his eyebrows, looking slightly over the reeds.  “I take it you’re curious about his, too~?”

“I… I… wait, what?”

Danny blinked at Dash a moment, finding the boy was looking at him, past him, with no real signs of acknowledgement.  Surely he had seen the white hair?  Surely he recognised him now?  He didn’t… he didn’t KNOW??

It was then that Danny realised.

Dash was a foreigner!  He might not even KNOW about the tale of the spirit prince!  He wouldn’t know any better!

Danny breathed a sigh of relief.  He ducked his head shyly, avoiding both Dash’s gaze, and the temptation to look back towards the reeds.  “L-listen, I didn’t come here for that… I had to wash the dye out… um… please…”  

The boy glanced back up at the blonde, nervous.  “Don’t say anything?  My grandfather… my family… I’m not supposed to let anyone see my hair.  It’s a bad omen here, trouble.  So um, please?  Just, keep it to yourself?”

Dash waved him down.  “Yeah, sure, man.  Have you seen MY hair?  I dyed it too when I first joined the army.  People were avoiding me like the plague,” he whispered back.

Danny blinked.  “Then…?”

“The general made me stop.  It was awesome, you should’ve seen it, what he did!”

Danny couldn’t help but smile, knowing all too well what Vlad could be like.  He HAD seen him go off on an advisor before, after all~

“What did he do?”

Dash’s face lit up, and he hunkered down in the water, lowering his voice as he told the tale.  “Okay, so, this had been going on for a while, I had been dying my hair, but y’know.”

He gestured at his extremely non-Chinese body type, skin color, and eye color.  “It didn’t do much for the whole package.”

The prince giggled.  “I can imagine~”

“No, seriously, I look terrible with black hair, don’t even ask.  But anyway!”

Dash grinned at Danny.  “I had been in camp for about a month, and then General Vladimir came in!  He was so amazing, up on his horse, with all that armor, and I was just speechless when I saw he was all decorated and stuff and he WASN’T Chinese!  He was just surveying the troops I was a part of, but he was the commanding officer of the commanding officer of the commanding officer and… yeah!  He was amazing!”

Danny couldn’t help the way his eyes trailed back towards the reeds, eyes filled with a fond softness.  “Yeah… he really is…”

Dash nodded enthusiastically.  “And after kinda hanging around and seeing how they worked, he NOTICED me!  I don’t really know what triggered it, but one morning after drills and we were all tired HE just came MARCHING in and called me up to the front!  Boy, was I terrified.  I didn’t know what he wanted me to do!  But then…”

He grinned over in Vlad’s direction and then back at Danny.  “He had me wash out my hair dye in front of EVERYONE,” he whispered.  “Now I know that sounds bad but it felt AMAZING to do that!  To straighten up and have them look at me for who I am, you know?”

Danny felt his heart constrict a little.  That alone, that very notion, sounded absolutely amazing to Danny… But he knew, unlike Dash, it would not be received as well if he himself went strolling into the camp with his white hair for all to see.  No, he had too much to risk…

“Yes… I think I do know… Go on?”

They watched Vlad swim behind a rock, admiring the way his muscles moved in the moonlight.  “Once I was done, he had me face off against him with a staff,” Dash murmured.  “Boy, I was ready to shit my PANTS at that, and of course he put me on the ground too fast to even realize what was going ON.  But then the best part happened!”

He looked at Danny, eyes glittering.  “He turned to the WHOLE ARMY, and said–!”

“What are you two trainees doing out here?” Vlad growled.


	4. Chapter Four

_“What are you two trainees doing out here?” Vlad growled._

 

Shrinking down in the water in surprise, the boys whirled around to come face to face with the general’s pelvis.  Danny and Dash’s eyes were transfixed for a moment… then slowly trailed up, up, up – past a powerful chest and arms that looked like they could snap a man in two – to stern cobalt eyes.

“Eeeep!”

Danny squeaked in alarm and quickly hid behind Dash’s larger bulk.  The poor boy was absolutely shaking.  Vlad couldn’t see him like this!  He couldn’t let Vlad see him for the tiny, frail boy he was, or he would NEVER want to train him!  Danny’s face was also bright red in mortification, feeling like he had invaded the man’s privacy somehow.  

“S-s-sorry general, sir, I w-was just…”  he swallowed thickly, clinging to Dash’s shoulder in fright and embarrassment as he sunk down lower into the river. “J-Just washing, I w-was about to h-h-head back, so sorry…”

“I was trying to see you naked, sir,” Dash said evenly.

“D-DASH!”  Danny cried in outrage, looking mortified.  “Oh gods help me…”

Vlad raised an eyebrow at both of them.  “Since you two are so keen on being chatty in the water, you can stay here and talk for another three hours,” he told them.  He left the lake, taking Dash’s towel and drying himself off.  “That will leave you one hour of sleep before sunrise, soldiers, and I do not tolerate lateness for morning drills.  Are we clear?”

Dash bit back a groan, but saluted.  “Yes, sir.”

Danny nodded sullenly, not upset at having to stay out here, but more so because he had upset Vlad before training had even started.  He had hoped to make the man proud, not look like a little fool…

“Yes, sir…”  He said clearly, if a little softly, keeping his head down respectively in a bow, eyes on the water.  He felt he had already angered the man enough, it would do him no good to be even more disrespectful now.  No, he would keep his distance and not push him any further.  he had already asked so much of the man already, he wouldn’t dare force the man to deal with his… his foolish little boy crush…

Vlad tucked the towel around his waist – not looking at them – and nodded.  “I will see you in the morning then.”

He walked up the hill, running his hands through his long silver hair.  Once he was gone, there was a long pause, where only the sound of the crickets and lapping water kept the two cold, naked boys company.

“…Anywho.”

Dash looked back at Danny, smiling again.  “He said ‘This boy has the same potential as any of you, even more than some of you, and if anyone treats him differently than you would the man next to you, you will take it up with ME!’” he grinned.  

Danny blinked at him, a little lost before he realised Dash was finishing up his story.  He gave the other boy a small smile, nodding.  “Yes… I’ve heard that the general believes in… equality…”

He frowned a little, remembering Vlad’s hesitance back up on the hill earlier that very day.  Even though the man had finally agreed, it had taken longer to convince him, then Danny was truly pleased with.  “Well… so I have heard…”

“Well, everybody knows he’s crazy about equality AND loyalty.  He’s my role model.”

Now that they didn’t have to be quiet anymore, Dash stood up and fell back with a splash into the water, backstroking towards the same rock.  “Like, there are SO many stories about the crap he’s been through.  Like, the slavery?  That disease he got, that turned his hair white?  That’s worse than ANYTHING I’d ever have NIGHTMARES about.”

Danny followed him, unable to contain his curiosity.  “I’ve heard of the disease.  I lived in the city and was taught near um… near the palace but… I had not heard much about his time in Russia…”

He pulled himself up on the rock, curling his legs modestly against his chest to hide his lower form.  Dash may be used to being around naked men here in the army, but Danny was very much a virgin and it had not only been drilled in his head to be modest, but to simply hide his unnatural looking body…

He glanced over at Dash, pushing back some of his white hair.  “Have… have you heard much?  I’d like to know…”

“Oh, you didn’t know already?”

Danny shrugged meekly.  “It’s no use in hiding that I greatly respect him, admire him… I even… kind of have feelings for him.  But I’m a soldier now and so far below him that it’s not even funny.  Still, I’d like to know more about him.  He is a really amazing man…”

He smiled at Dash, sharing his own little story.  “I heard, that he taught the prince before he died.  That he talked to him, just like a normal person.  He was one of the few, who ever dared to do so… not because the prince would mind, but because it was just unheard of.  No one… really liked the prince at the palace.  Or so I was told.  It’s kinda sad really, he must have been lonely…”

Dash raised an eyebrow.  “…Huh.”

“But that’s all I know about the general!” Danny quickly cut in, blushing slightly.  “Just, tales from the palace, from around the city, you know.  I’d like to hear whatever YOU’VE been told… I’m curious…”

Dash propped his hands on his hips.  “Hmmm… well, I don’t know.  I don’t wanna give you information that isn’t certain, especially about the general.  That’s just not right.  But hey, you could try to find out by yourself!  You seem the studious type, right?”

“You could um… say that, I guess.”

The blonde grinned, pointing at him.  “And you’re a hella good-looking kid.  You might be able to flirt it outta him!” he joked.

Danny flushed pink, shaking his head in denial.  “N-no, no way!  He couldn’t possibly!  I-I’m just a sheltered boy from the city, there’s no WAY he could ever… ever…”

“Pffff, nahhh, you’ve got a sweet ass for a dude.  And those blue eyes?  Geez, why do YOU dye your hair black, the white hair and THOSE make for a combo no man OR woman could resist,” Dash replied, smirking.  “If I didn’t have a girl back home, I’d be hitting on ya!”

Danny stared at Dash incredulously, mouth hanging open for a moment before he shook his head, shoulders slumping.  “Maybe… maybe where you are from, I would be considered beautiful, but here…”

He frowned, kicking at the water.  “Here, I’m nothing more than a curse, an unlucky spirit born into the living world.  Many back in the city believe I am better off dead.  Many there likely believe this war is my fault, just because I was born a phantom…  Only my grandfather ever loved me like this, ever called me beautiful.  He used to say I was his little miracle…”

He looked over at Dash, blue eyes bright with a painful desperation.  “Would you… would you show me your home, when this is over?  Would be my friend, even when I… when I stop dying my hair, after the war?  It’s… a lot to ask, but, you are the first to ever… to ever not CARE…”

“Kid, quit vomiting the poetry!” Dash exclaimed, scoffing.  “If that’s the way those city people treat you, you can LIVE with me after the war!  So liven up a little!  My fiancee Star will love you, it’ll be great!” he laughed.  “Our pretty lil Dan the farm hand~!  And hey!”

He splashed the boy playfully.  “If that whole curse thing is true at least it’ll keep the obnoxious neighbors away~!”

Danny laughed, liking the idea far more than he knew he should, considering how impossible it would be.  “I would like that, Dash, thank you…”

He bit his lip, resting his chin against his knees.  “Do you really think the general could like me?  Like that?  I mean…”

The boy shrugged, ears turning pink.  “I just never thought about it before.”

Dash gave a little shrug.  “Well, I wouldn’t know, all joking aside,” he replied, going back to swimming.  “He’s an awesome guy, but all I’ve heard from his love life are rumors.  He was once betrothed to a Chinese princess forever ago, I heard, but she broke it off for some other lord.  He guarded her kid, or something?  I dunno.  At least until he got him killed, poor kid…”

Danny didn’t know it, but his hands were shaking slightly.  He was pale, but the dark hid it well as he stared at Dash with wide, unbelieving eyes.  

“This… this princess… was she called, ‘the Saint of China’…?”

“I don’t know?  Her name started with an M, I think, but it doesn’t really matter now, I guess,” Dash shrugged.  “Either way, she died in childbirth and the lord guy basically worked himself to death, so Vladimir and the Emperor were the only two people this prince kid had left.”

The blonde sighed.  “It’s really sad, actually… It’s a wonder the general even had the strength to come train us,” he said.  “But then again, I think it’s really hardened his resolution to defend China, too.”

“Oh… I see…”

Danny had to close his eyes for a moment, forcing himself not to shake or shatter apart.  He couldn’t afford that, couldn’t afford breaking down now.  But it was almost impossible not to.  His own mother… the woman everyone claimed he killed with his very existence, along with his father.  Drove him to insanity, they claimed… Danny wouldn’t know, he had only been six months old when the man died…

Vlad had been betrothed to her?  Knew her?  Maybe even LOVED her?  Was… was that the only reason he was ever there?  Ever willingly taught Danny, was kind to him, TALKED to him?  All because…

Because Danny was his dead lover’s son…?

The prince suddenly felt very cold.  Yes… it all made sense now.  Why else would a man like Vladimir waste his time with the unwanted prince?  He was just honoring his mother’s memories, doing his DUTY.  They were right, all of them.  He was unwanted, unneeded…

Fine.  He was no longer doing this to make Vladimir proud, there was no longer a point.  No, he would do this for himself and for his grandfather.  He would make his only family proud, prove to be the miracle his grandfather always claimed him to be.  He would become strong, be a good ruler, prove to his people that he was no bad omen!

And he would do it, without any more distractions…

The next time the prince looked up, the sky was turning grey in the east.

“The three hours are up…”  Danny muttered, eyes dark and head down.  His whole body read of someone defeated, but his spine soon straightened, and a hard determination filled his gaze.  “We need to get back.  Training is at dawn…”

Dash blinked up at Danny.  “Yeah, sure okay… but uh.  You went silent for a long time,” he said.  “Did I say something…?”

The prince smiled at Dash, an honest smile, even if it looked a little painful.  “No, Dash, you just… opened my eyes a little, is all.  I just realised that I have a lot of growing up to do, and a long way to go till I can be of any help to China.”

He slid off the rock, holding a hand out to Dash.  “We’re going to show them, right?  Show them, that we DO have what it takes, that we’re not so different.  I would be honored, to have you as my friend.”

He smiled, chuckling softly.  “I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather have watching my back out there, seeing as yours is so BIG~”

Dash’s chest swelled a little bit.  “Well, uh, ahem!  I know~” he grinned, flexing playfully.

They both got out of the lake.  Danny wrapped his towel around himself, shivering from the chill; meanwhile, Dash glanced around, flopping a bit as he spun, looking for his towel.  “Umm… OH.”

The blonde frowned.  “The general took my towel.  Huh.”

“O-oh… um, here.”  Danny held out his own towel, having already dried himself.  “I brought a change of clothes, so…  I don’t need it?  You can drop it by my tent later…”

The boy turned his back on Dash as he put on his clothes, quickly wrapping up his long hair in the dark cloth, hiding it once more from view.  He sighed, grabbing up his dirty clothes, and turning back to Dash, fidgeting.  “Do uh… you know how to get back?  It wasn’t this dark out when I first got here…”

“Every man for himself!”

Dash tossed the used towel on Danny’s head and rubbed it all over his face.  “BUTT TOWEL!” he yelled, laughing as he ran for the tents.  “You can get me back for that during morning drills someday!!  See ya!”

“You HUNDAN!!”  Danny screeched, pulling the towel off of himself as he ran after Dash back into camp.  “I WILL get you back for that, just you wait!”

 

~*~

 

Danny had barely just enough time to re-dye his hair and catch a quick nap before it was time for early morning training.  The first few drills were to happen at dawn for a few hours, followed by breakfast, a short reprieve, and then more drills, so on and so forth.  Today was about figuring out the soldiers’ skill level.  Vladimir instigated this form of training years ago, so that he could place the soldiers into three, then three more, different ranks depending on where their strengths lay and what they could do.  Those first three ranks were the guang (light), pingjun (average), and zhong (heavy) ranks,  which were then placed into the chu xuezhe (novice), zhongjian (intermediate), and shulian (skilled) ranks.  This way, every soldier got the training they needed.

Danny had actually done a lot of research on Vlad’s army and his training tactics, learning them like he would any type of strategy.  He was glad for it now, and he had a feeling he would be placed within the guang rank, the light footed.  He was fast and he had some basic skills with a blade.  

He just hoped he could prove to be even worthy enough to even BE ranked…

As the sun rose, Danny raced to the center of camp, falling in line with all the other rookie soldiers just as the general came out to assist them.

A big hand slapped Danny on the shoulder.  “Yo, butt towel~” Dash grinned playfully.  “Sleep well?”

“No more than you did, I’m sure.”  Danny replied with a raised brow, smirking.  “Did you dream of me, hundan~?”

The blonde snorted, propping his hands on his hips again.  “What does that even mean, ‘hundan’?”

“Lots of things~”  Danny chirped.  “Bastard, asshole, jerk, and SO much more~”

“Ooooooooooh, we got a smartass over here!”

Dash grabbed him and put him in a headlock, raising his voice.  “Lil Dan’s getting a sense of humor!  We should all be scared!” he laughed.

“Let go of me, you big brute!”  Danny cried, struggling to get out of his hold while he laughed, cheeks pink from the exertion.  Then, he spotted a familiar large, dark headed figure.  “Kwan!  Kwan, heeelp!”

Kwan smiled, chuckling at the two of them.  “Dash, what are you doing?”

“I’m a hundan!” Dash announced proudly.

Tucker walked between the two of them, smirking.  “Yes, yes you are.”

“FALL IN!”

The four of them jumped and hurried to stand straight and tall, as Vlad came out of the general’s tent; he was not dressed in armor, or any official’s uniform, but in the same training clothes as the rest of them.  His cool blue eyes surveyed the rows and rows of young men… his gaze catching lightly on Danny’s face, then he quietly moved on, standing next to a rack of weapons.  He ran his hand along the smooth wood of a staff…

Then, the general turned to his soldiers.  “Today, some of you will begin your first day of training!” Vlad announced.  “Others have had more experience, but know this!  NOT ONE OF YOU IS BETTER THAN ANOTHER!”

His eyes grew cold.  “All of you can bleed!  All of you will bleed!” he announced.  “All of you are men!  You will treat each others as equals.  You will eat together!  You will fight together!  You will work HARD!  And I will accept NOTHING LESS FROM SOLDIERS UNDER MY COMMAND!”

“YES, SIR!” came the echoing roar.  Dash and Kwan joined in, hard, determined expressions on their faces.  Danny and Tucker both hurried to echo the sentiment.

Vladimir looked appeased.  The general took a staff off the rack.  “Anyone who has not been given a rank, form a line before me!” he announced.  “If you have, I want you to pair up with a man of similar weight class and give me sets until I TELL YOU TO STOP!  GO!”

Immediately, the soldiers around Danny hurried to find a person who was about their height and weight and began to alternate punching, kicking, and blocking each other; Dash and Kwan paired up like they had been doing it for months, not even sparing Danny a glance as they threw themselves into their sets.

Tucker’s slender fingers wrapped around Danny’s arm, pulling him along.  “Yeah, c’mon, there’s no distracting those two once they get into it.”

The boy smiled at Danny with friendly green eyes.  “I’m Tucker, by the way!” he said.  “They call me that because I really ‘tuck in’ during meal times.  And you’re… Dan, right?  Is that short for something or is it just DAN?”

Danny smiled, the young man’s easy-going nature almost contagious.  “Just Dan, please.  It’s nice to meet you, Tucker.”

The prince glanced around at the other soldiers as they went about following command, suddenly realising that compared to most of them, he was very small.  “So um, do you have a rank yet?  Cause I should probably…”  He gestured weakly over to the line forming in front of the general, both excited and very much apprehensive about finding out exactly what his worth in the army IS…

And he wasn’t sure if he was ready to face the man again so soon after last night…

Tucker shrugged and gave him a nervous smile as they both joined the line.  “I’m new, too.  Dash is an intermediate medium soldier and Kwan is an advanced heavy soldier, so they’re usually not in the same skill class but they always pair up for the weight-class drills,” he murmured, keeping his voice down.  “So, what do you think you’re gonna get?”

“Guang, light class rank.  I’m not sure about my skill level though.”  Danny admitted with a shrug as he fell in line behind Tucker.  “Back home, I was taught defense and offense in private, it wasn’t viewed as… proper.  So to be honest, I don’t know if I’m decent or utterly terrible.  Guess I’ll find out soon enough…”

Tucker made a noncommittal gesture.  “Hey, at least you got some training, right?” he whispered.  “I know literally NOTHING.  I’m probably gonna be a beginner guang.  Ha!  That sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, doesn’t it?”

“Quiet!”

The boy fell silent under Vlad’s command.  Danny blinked and swallowed, facing forward.

The cool-eyed general surveyed the boys that had come to meet him.  The tip of his staff hovered just above the ground as he looked them over…

“Here’s how this is going to work.”

Vlad pointed to the rack of weapons.  “You will come at me with or without a weapon of your choice!” he announced.  “Do not fool yourself into thinking you might impress me, because I WILL strike you down!  When I do, I will give you your rank, and that will BE your rank until I have told you otherwise.  Are we clear?”

“YES, SIR!” the boys yelled.  This time Danny was on time; Tucker was only a beat behind them.

Vlad stepped back, whipping his staff through the air.  More than one boy flinched at the whistling sound it made.  “Good.  Which of you will be first?”

Danny glanced at Tucker questioningly.  The boy HAD been ahead of him in the line and he had been here at camp before Danny, it was only fair…

Tucker stared at the blue-eyed boy like he was insane, glancing at Vlad’s imposing figure and back.  He didn’t move.

The prince swallowed, then hardened his resolve.  He turned to meet Vladimir’s dark gaze, unflinching.

“I will.”

Without waiting a reply, Danny moved over to the weapons rack to look over his choices, determined to only use what he knew he COULD.  This wasn’t about impressing Vlad, Danny KNEW he would likely get knocking down and hurt pretty badly today, but he WILL show Vlad what he could do.  Danny knew he had some skills, no matter how limited.

He just wished he knew more than what his cousins had taught him.  There were no throwing knives here, no needles or sharp rings.  Those were too delicate for the army it seemed…

Suddenly, Danny’s eyes fell upon a pair of large, folded fans, tucked away to the side and unused.  Could those be…?

The prince reached out with deft hands, grabbing hold of each fan and snapping them open with precision, twirling them lightly in his hands as he rolled his wrists, feeling their weight.  He was used to much smaller ones, but these were weapons he was familiar with, the chinese metal fighting fans.  He had not known the army still used them.  But then again, skill with such weapons wasn’t easy and they required speed and balance.  Mastering these also meant one could apply the skills to other blades, usually by dual wielding smaller ones.

Danny turned around then, spinning his fans as he gingerly fell into a crouch, one leg bent behind him while the other stretched out to the side.  He breathed in and out slowly, desperately trying to remember everything he had been taught, no matter how little it was.  HIs bright blue eyes hardened as he looked back at the general, back rigid in determination.

“At your command…”

WHACK!

Faster than the eye could follow, Vlad was on him.  A starburst of pain shot through Danny’s ribs; the boy yelped and hit the ground, clutching at his bruised side.

The general glanced the boy over… then raised his voice.  “Guang, light class!  Intermediate!”

Vlad nudged Danny with his foot.  “Get up and go clean those weapons, soldier, then register them at the armory as your own!” he told him.  “Report to Captain Lancer when you’ve finished and tell him your rank.”

Danny watched as the general walked away, mouth hanging open in stunned shock.  “Wow…”  he breathed, slowly climbing to his feet.  “I forgot how fast he was…”

It was then that he realised what had just happened.  Intermediate.  He had actually made it into the intermediate rank!  And he got to KEEP the fans!  He had to fight with himself a moment not to jump up in down in delight, clutching the fans to his chest as he raced off to his tent.  He had been given some basic supplies there, including all one might need to take care of a weapon.  

After cleaning up the fans – one a royal blue color and the other emerald green – he quickly bandaged up his bruised side and made his way back towards the training area.  It took a moment for him to find the right place, but he soon found the guang training grounds.  

He walked towards the other newcomers, smiling happily when he saw a familiar face.  “Tucker!”

The boy waved at him weakly from the ground.  “Hey there, Mr. Intermediate!” he said.  “Help me up?”

Danny slung the fans over his back and leaned down to help the other boy up, chuckling.  “What happened to YOU?”

“OWowow, the old bastard hit me on the back of the knee,” Tucker snorted, leaning heavily on one leg.  “Geez, that guy can HIT!”

Danny grinned.  “Well, he’s not a general for NOTHING.  He is a seasoned warrior, skilled in all manner of weapons and martial arts.  You would have to be a MASTER to even land a hit~”

The prince suddenly frowned, shaking his head as he forced himself to put Vlad out of his mind once more.  “Any way… you got into guang, right?  Under Captain Lancer?  Maybe we will get to train together!”

“HAHA!  Yeah, I hope so!  I got beginner.”

“Really?”

Tucker made a face.  “Yeah.  I didn’t know how to use any of those fancy weapons, but I’ve used a long rake before, to fend off wild boars!” he said.  “I thought I could handle one of those spears but they weigh a TON!  General Muscles barely needed to help it put me on the ground.”

Danny couldn’t help but laugh at that mental image, shaking his head.  “Silly, you should have just tried the staff then!  I bet you’ll be great at it~”

He took the other boy’s hand, smiling all the way.  “Now come on, let’s start training!”

Tucker and Danny turned towards the training grounds, quickly finding a small group of soldiers surrounding a balding, older man who held the reins of a beautiful black mare.  The boys joined the group being assessed, and waited politely for the captain to reach them.  “A wise man once said, ‘If one is late for practice, one is late for life,’” Lancer said sternly.  He had a voice older than his body, which was pudgy from rich food and muscular from training completed at a younger age.  

He looked around at the young boys.  “Does anyone know who said that?”

Danny smiled, catching on quickly.  “You did, sir.”

The man turned to look at him, raising a brow.  The prince quickly explained.  “Wisdom comes from words, from understanding, not from whomever created them.  It doesn’t matter if another said it first, YOU spoke the words, because you respect their truth, and their wisdom, making YOU a wise man.  Knowledge is power, and with it comes wisdom of the world around us.  If we, soldiers, are late for practice, then we–”

“Are late for life.  OUR life.”  Tucker concluded, looking impressed.  “Wow, you sure know a lot of stuff for a regular city boy!”

Danny flushed, ducking his head.  “I only know what I have learned.  I’m still growing and still learning and only a true wise man knows, that you never stop learning…”

Lancer smiled faintly.  “Well, color me impressed,” he said lightly.  “Now, let’s see you put those words into action.”

He drew in a slow breath…

“I WANT FIFTY LAPS AROUND THOSE TREES, GO GO GO!” the man bellowed, pointing his tablet at a small grove almost half a mile away.  “THE FIRST ONE OF YOU TO COLLAPSE GETS NO DINNER!!”

“Holy CRAP!” Tucker yelped.  

All the boys took off running; to all their surprise, Lancer got on the mare whose reins he’d been holding and kept apace with them, bellowing at them all the way.  “THE MARCH TO BATTLE WILL BE TIRING AND ONCE YOU GET THERE, YOU WILL HAVE TO FIGHT!” the man yelled.  “Let’s build up that ENDURANCE, COME ON!”

“Yes, SIR!”  Danny and Tucker chorused, falling in line with the other boys as they trotted along.  Danny stumbled once, when he felt one of his fans slip against his back.  Cursing the fact he had not tied them down properly, he pulled one fan out and held it towards Tucker.  “Hold this for a second, please!  Just keep running, I’ll keep pace!”

“Got it!”

The other boy took the fan, clutching it as they ran along with the others.  Danny quickly untied and re-tied his straps, properly securing the holsters for the fans all while he ran alongside the darker boy.  He sighed in relief once it was in place, taking the other fan back from Tucker and returning it to the holster.  “Thanks!  Now come on, I missed dinner last night, I REFUSE to miss it again!”

“And I am NEVER missing dinner again!!” Tucker yelled, running ahead of Danny.  “YOU c’mon~!”

Danny laughed, wheezing slightly from the effort.  “Run like that and you’ll tire yourself out sooner!  Endurance is not about SPEED!”

That being said, Danny was still struggling through those few laps.  Being raised in a palace really didn’t help with one’s endurance or muscle strength…

Suddenly, something turned under his foot.

“WAH– OOF!”

Danny hit the grass.

Lancer trotted ahead, sighing to himself.  “We have a long way to go…”


	5. Chapter Five

The rest of the day was filled with running, exercises, and basic striking and blocking sets that they would be doing every morning at dawn.  Danny barely had the chance to touch his fans; by the end of the day, their weight felt like a boulder on his back.  As the sun set, the quang boys trudged over to the biggest campfire, where they were given bowls of rice and bean sprouts.  Tucker had inhaled half of his by the time they sat down.  “Sometimes–” he said, swallowing, “–they actually have real chicken!  But it’s usually this.  Or dumplings!  I loooove dumplings.”

Danny took a much slower bite, savoring his food and giving his stomach a chance to fill up on the food before adding more to it.  The food was decent, not exactly what he was used to at the palace, but it was better than the near nothing he had faced during that long week after he escaped the huns.  Yes, much better than nothing.  Either way, the day had been hellish, and his lily white skin was still pink from the sun.  He didn’t want to make himself sick…

“Heyyyyyyy, how was your first day, butt towel?!”

A big, heavy, sweaty arm came down on Danny’s shoulder.  Dash grinned at the smaller boy.  “Not TOO crazy, I hope!”

Kwan came over, sitting quietly on the other side of the prince.  “Dash, he looks half dead,” he snorted.  “Leave him alone.”

“OH NO, HALF DEAD?!  SOMEONE GET A MEDIC!”

Tucker scowled up at the big blonde.  “How the heck do you still have so much energy?”

Danny deftly ignored the half dead comment, knowing the boys didn’t mean it the same way as he was used to.  Instead, he snorted and shoved Dash off of himself, taking another big bite of his dinner.  “It’s because hundans are like cockroaches, annoying little things that you just can’t kill~”

Dash snorted and grabbed a pinch of Danny’s rice, shoving it in his own mouth.  “Gotta learn to be fast~!” he said through the mouthful of food.  “And I’M the fastest!”

Tucker smirked into his bowl.  “That’s probably why you’ve only ever dated one girl.”

Kwan burst out laughing.  Dash looked scandalized.

Danny just looked… confused.  “Why would that cause him to be with only one girl?” he asked.  “What does being fast have to do with courting?”

Kwan seemed to be having a hard time breathing.  “OH!  AH!  AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!”

“SHUT UP, KWAN!”

“I CAN’T!  HAHAHA!  YOU HAVE HAD THAT COMING FOR SO LONG!!”

“THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID!” Dash grinned and tackled Kwan.  The big Chinese boy held his rice above his head, yelling in protest.  “How ‘bout YOU, huh?!  You dated many girls gettin’ hauled around as an admiral’s son?!”

“Oh, I got ALL the girls!  She was like, ‘no way!’”

Dash chimed in.  “And you were all ‘yes way!’”

“No way!!” Kwan finished.  The two collapsed with laughter, flailing at each other weakly.

Danny blinked, looking at the two boys on the ground in concern.  “I… am very confused…”

He looked over at Tucker.  “They also seem to have stopped breathing, should I get help?  I still don’t understand why they are laughing so hard over being fast with a girl.  You all confuse me…”

Even Tucker couldn’t keep from dissolving into giggles at Danny.  “Hahahahaha!  Man, you and I need to have a serious conversation about ‘the birds and the bees~’”

“Oh, like you could teach him ANYTHING, Tucker~”

“Yeah, you’ve gotten to second base with a BROOMSTICK!  MAYBE!”

“OH, YOU TAKE THAT BACK!”

“Dan Fenton?” interrupted a cultured voice.

The boys paused in their scrapping to glance up at Captain Lancer.  The balding man raised an eyebrow distastefully at their roughhousing, then gave a look to Danny.  “General Vladimir requests your presence in his tent.  Report there as soon as you’ve finished your meal.”

Danny blinked up at him, not sure how he exactly felt about this summons.  “Y-yes, sir.”

Lancer nodded, gave one last eyebrow to Dash and Kwan, and primly walked away.

The two waited until the captain was out of earshot before Dash snorted.  “I think we can all agree that the only girl THAT guy’s ever touched was the one he came out of,” he commented, then was shoved to the ground by Kwan.  “OOF!”

Tucker stared at Danny.  “Geez, what’d you do to get called to the general’s tent?” the smaller boy asked, continuing to gulp down his rice.

Danny looked down at his own bowl, slowly taking another bite.  “Nothing that I’m aware of…”

He glanced at Dash, then away again, figuring the boy might think it had to do with what happened last night, maybe.  Danny figured that Vlad just wanted to check in on ‘the prince’.  The boy was beginning to hate his blood!  If he could have been born a NORMAL boy, not a prince, not a spirit, just a normal citizen!  Things would be so much DIFFERENT!

And he might not have ever met Vlad…

Danny swallowed down the last of his dinner, sighing as he placed the bowl down.  “I um… guess I should get going.”

“Good luck,” Kwan smiled.  “I doubt you’ll need it, though.”

Dash frowned at the older boy.  “Why are you so happy?  Wouldn’t you be anxious?”

“Of course, but the general is a reasonable man.”

The blonde nodded approvingly.  “Hell yeah, he is!” he agreed.

Tucker gave Danny a thumbs up.  “Go get ‘im, kid!”

“Um, thanks.  I think.”  

Danny stood up and slowly walked away from the campfire, feet dragging a little as weariness settled in.  It had been a long day and Danny was sorely tempted to just head to his own tent for some sleep.  But he knew better than to just ignore the general, he didn’t want to purposely anger the man…

However, he did at least take the time to wash his hands and face before moving on.  He knew he shouldn’t care about what Vlad thought of his appearance, not anymore.  But old habits died hard.  At least he would have the excuse of needing to wash out his hair in order to leave soon… hopefully.

Finally, Danny made it to the large tent near the center of camp, pulling aside the flap to step into the warm, brightly lit living space.  He spotted the dark form of the general further in, near the fire – smoke funneling out through an open flap in the ceiling.  He dropped his head and kept his eyes down demurely as he entered, fingers tangled in the leather straps of his fan’s harness.  “You… wished to see me, sir?”

“Yes.”

Vladimir beckoned him closer.  “Come here.  Please.”

Wordlessly, Danny sighed – but obeyed, approaching the general.  “Sir…”

“I know you are tired, your majesty,” Vlad murmured, gazing into the flames.  “But forgive me… I beg of you to do as I ask…”

Danny’s brows furrowed, shoulders hunching, a little uncomfortable being in such intimate proximity to the general.  Before, back at the palace, Danny would hunger for the moment that Vladimir would visit him, talk to him in such private tones…

Now, those memories felt a little tainted, and he didn’t know if he would ever be comfortable in private with this man again.  It was a painful thought, but perhaps it was for the best.  Danny knew he couldn’t cling to hope and wishes and childish desires any longer…

He kept his head lowered, and waited for Vlad to speak.

For a while, the only sound was that of the crackling flames.  

Then, finally, the general closed his eyes and took a deep breath.  “You do not want me to apologize for my actions today, so I will not,” he stated.

He picked up a clay jar from his other side and opened it.  “Raise your arm on your bruised side, Dan.”

Danny blinked, surprised, then shook his head timidly.  “General… Vlad, you don’t need to do that, really… I’m okay…”

“Raise your arm,” Vlad repeated sternly.

Danny bit his tongue and turned away, scowling at the opposite side of the tent as he roughly pulled one side of his robe down and raised his arm.  He winced slightly at the sharp tug he felt from the bruise, but schooled his features, unwilling to show the older man his pain.  He wanted to snap at him, order him to refrain from treating him like such a child, but he knew he could not.  He had all but begged the man to not treat him like a prince, to treat him like one of his soldiers, so he would do the same in return…

It didn’t make him happy though.

Cloth shifted over the bruise, and then Danny heard a quiet exhale as Vlad looked at the discolored skin.  The general lowered the boy’s shirt with difficulty.  “That’s going to hurt in the morning, but it won’t be inhibiting if you push through,” Vlad murmured, putting the jar back where he’d taken it.

Danny nodded in understanding as he rebandaged the bruise.  He was quiet for a moment, waiting to be dismissed now that the general had seen he hadn’t hurt him too terribly… but all was silent.  He began to grow nervous, fidgeting slightly, as he finally glanced up to look at the older man.

Vlad was poking at the fire; a log fell down and burst into embers.  Red motes floated up through the air, fading to grey…

“Captain Lancer tells me you show promise,” Vlad commented.  “If I did not already KNOW you, I would say it is too early to tell.  But I do, and I agree.”

The man’s eyes flicked towards Danny.  “That blonde soldier, he saw you in the lake last night.  Should there be cause for worry?”

Danny couldn’t help but smile a little, shaking his head.  “Dash was not aware of the phantom prince, he does not know how rare my discoloring is.  He was… sweet though, last night.”

The prince shrugged, chuckling at the memory.  “I asked him not to tell, that it was a secret.  He said he understood why I dyed my hair, since he was a foreigner and all, but he asked why I bothered.  He was… very offended on my behalf, when I told him my coloring was considered bad luck, a bad omen.  He was kind, said where he was from, I would be considered beautiful.”

Danny shook his head, laughing.  “He actually offered for me to come live with him once the war was over, where he claimed I would be treated kindly and I would never have to dye my hair again.  If only he knew the truth, I wonder what he would think then…”

“No doubt the offer would stand tenfold.”

Danny looked up, surprised.  “You… you really think so?”

He sagged a little, smiling forlornly.  “It’s a very tempting offer… all things considered…”

Vlad put down the poker and turned to look earnestly at the boy.  “Would you accept it?” he asked.  

Danny couldn’t help but laugh at that.  “As much as I want to?  No, no I wouldn’t.  I have a duty, Vladimir, just as you do.”

The prince sighed, turning to gaze into the fire thoughtfully.  “One day I will rule over China, and I will rule just as my grandfather has before me.  But before I can do that, I need to prove myself to my family, my people… myself… I will one day be Emperor.”  

He sagged a little, sighing.  “Or an Emperor’s or Empress’s consort, if the advisors have their way…”

Vlad sighed, shaking his head.  “You have a bewildering sense of duty, Dan…”

Danny smirked, glancing at him.  “Do I?  It’s how I was raised, how I was BRED.  I truly have no other purpose, but at least I hope to one day gain control over my own life… Maybe one day grandfather will find the right man or woman who will love me as I am, and we can rule together, be happy.  But until then, I will do what I must, what I am meant to do…”

The prince’s smile softened.  “It’s funny, really… being here, under your command, is the most control I’ve ever had over my own life.”

Vlad smiled at that.  “That is both amusing, and sad,” he chuckled.  “A little romantic, even.”

He sighed, rolled his shoulder with a wince, then gave Danny a curious look.  “So, do you think you might find someone like that among the soldiers?” he asked.  He chuckled.  “You seem to admire this Dash fellow.”

Danny froze for a moment at the change in topic, keeping his eyes down.  “N-no, Dash is engaged to a woman and… To be honest, I don’t think I can find what I need among the soldiers…”

He smiled bitterly, keeping his eyes on the fire.  “I thought I knew once… what I wanted, who I wanted.  But it was just… just a childish crush on my part, truly.  It will never happen, but I think I’m too far gone to think otherwise…”

He shrugged slightly.  “Love… love was never truly an option for me of course.  It’s a nice thought, a WONDERFUL thought, and my grandfather tries… but I don’t think I will ever be that lucky, truly…”

Vlad blinked at Danny, stunned.  “You felt emotions for someone?  Someone in the palace?  Who?” he asked.  “You never told me of– No, no, you most likely would not feel comfortable for someone like me to be such a sacred privy.  I apologize.”

“No one knew, Vladimir… It wasn’t my place, not unless y-HE…”  Danny floundered, flushing.  “Not unless he… made a move first.  It’s within his right of course, grandfather favors him… But um… I’m not really suited for him, I’m not really worthy… for anyone like him…”

“It hurts me to hear you say that, Danwei,” the general murmured.

Danny stared at him.  Vlad quickly averted his eyes, keeping them humbly affixed on the ground.  “Whoever this man was, it is not fair to him or to yourself to say either party was unworthy,” he told the prince.  “Perhaps he was unaware of your affections.  Or he was the one who felt unworthy.”

The silver-haired man gave him a small smile.  “I can speak from experience that courting royalty can be an intimidating venture, even with all the imperial support in the world.”

Danny felt something inside him shudder and break, go cold as his suspicions were confirmed.  At least partly.  He steeled his resolve and hardened his gaze, determined to know the truth.  he NEEDED to know, it was the only way he would be able to move on!

At least, that’s what he told himself…

“Vladimir…”  he breathed, face expressionless.  “Were you… betrothed to my mother once…?”

Vlad glanced up at Danny – surprised at first, then accepting.  “I suppose a noble told you?” he replied, smiling halfheartedly.  He sighed and shook his head.  “Oh, you were bound to find out some way or another.  Yes, yes I was betrothed to your mother, once upon a time.”

“Why… why didn’t you ever tell me yourself?”  Danny asked, voice sharp.  “Is that the only reason you ever talked to me?  Were kind to me?  Because honestly General Masters, it makes a far more crueler sense then you would think, considering my upbringing.”

The boy was so stiff, so cold looking at that moment, even the fire light reflecting off of his pale skin just made him look all the colder.  “I know what happened when I was born, they never failed to inform me of why I was a curse.  Born half dead, killing my mother in the process and driving my own father to insanity before he finally died.  So forgive me, if I suddenly feel like the one man I truly trusted outside my own family, might have had his own agenda!”

He suddenly sagged, unable to stay so cold in the presence of the older man, a man he still greatly loved, even when he was the reason the prince was hurting so much.  “I’m s-sorry… tell me I’m w-w-wrong…. please, tell m-me I’m wrong…. I just… A-after everything, y-y-you must realise how this m-makes me f-f-feel!”

Vlad’s eyes narrowed sharply.  

“Do not ever presume to speak of yourself that way again,” he ordered.  “You cannot think of yourself that way.  Your tutors and any other person that made you believe that were prissy animals with gossipping tongues and no courage, and I will not have it.”

The young prince sniffled, a tear sliding down his pale cheek.  “V-Vlad…”

The general glared at the fire, a look of unimaginable rage on his foreign features and tension in every line of his body.  “Your ‘curse’ is born of superstition and nothing more.  I care not for this talk of spirits and dead creatures, it is vile and hurtful and STUPID beyond anything I have heard.  Now that I am your mentor, your teacher, your GENERAL, I will not tolerate it!  Do you understand?  You are a HUMAN BEING.”

Vlad clenched his teeth – then heaved a sigh and closed his eyes, trying to relax.  “I did love your mother,” he told Danny.  “I was the one that asked for her hand, and your grandfather approved wholeheartedly.  However, she did not have feelings for me and she married for love.  I may have been bitter once, but I would never hold that against her.”

He took another deep breath.  “…When she died, I mourned.  It was difficult, getting over her loss.  My duties lost their luster.”

The general interlaced his fingers and rested them against his mouth, his dark eyes lost in the past.  “I still remember where I was when I received news of your father’s passing,” he murmured.  “I was in a camp like this one, training young soldiers, and this man on a horse brought me a scroll…”

Vlad fell silent for a long minute… brows furrowing in anger, sadness…

Then he sucked in a breath and rubbed his face.  He gazed back into the fire.  “I wonder if your gossipping tutors ever told you that your father was my best friend.”

Danny shook his head slowly, wide, red rimmed eyes staring back at Vladimir.  There were still tears gathered on his lashes, a few even slipped and slid down his cheeks, but his sadness was silent, and his focus remained on Vlad.  The cracks in the prince’s mask were finally showing themselves, and there was just no stopping the tears that had been gathering for years from fading with simple will…

Vlad didn’t notice the prince’s abrupt silence, his eyes still glazed over in his memories.  “He was never the brightest man, your father,” he smiled bitterly.  “He was an oaf, but he was kind and he grew on you.  I had isolated myself from him in petty bitterness and grief after your mother died.  Maybe if I had been there for him… maybe…”

The general bit his lip, his face falling.  “…There was a lot of heartbreak surrounding your birth, my prince,” he told Danny.  “I would not deny that.  But none of it was ever your fault.  You were not even a year old, and already both your parents were dead.”

Hesitantly, Vlad glanced at Danny’s feet.  “I… I had no obligation to come see you.  But I did.”

His eyes lingered there for a moment, then he stared at the boy’s chest – not daring to go any higher.  “You were so small.  You were crying and… no one was with you.”

A small sound of distress filtered past the prince’s swollen throat, tears falling unbidden now.  “Y-you’re the one who t-t-told grandpa… You’re the o-one… who s-s-saved me that d-day…. I was cold and s-starving…!” he whispered, choked.  “G-Grandpa… always t-told me I had a guardian a-angel…”

He smiled brokenly past his tears, chest rising and falling past his sobs.  “He c-c-called me… his l-little miracle… when a-a-all others… c-cursed my n-name…”

Vlad nodded softly, eyes humbly lowered.  “I carried you to your grandfather, and you cried and screamed all the way, but–”

He glanced up quickly at Danny’s eyes.  “I never wanted to leave your side again.”

The general bowed his head to his prince.  “I vowed that no matter what, no matter how you needed me, I would always be with you, to protect you, care for you, to do what was best for you.  Not for your mother, your father, or even the Emperor, who saved me in more ways than I could ever count.

“I did it for YOU, and no one else…”

Danny’s head fell as he sobbed, hands coming to his face to try and hide the worst of his tears as he finally cried out all the pain and loneliness that had gathered over the years.  Vlad… Vlad had been there because he WANTED to be there.  Not for his mother… not for anyone else…

He had been there for HIM.  

Such a thing had never really happened to Danny before, no one had ever done something like that for him, not willingly, not without a secondary reason.  And so he cried, not just out of loss and pain and loneliness, but also out of relief that the one man he had come to love so dearly, had still honestly cared for him.  Vlad had truly been there, for HIM.  He had been told tears were a weakness, that seeing him cry only confirmed what kind of weak, pathetic child he was.  But he no longer cared and he couldn’t stop even if he tried…

“Danny…”

Strong arms wrapped around him, and brought him close to a hard, muscular chest.  “It’s… It’s alright, my prince…” Vlad whispered.  “I’ve always tried to help you and protect you, and look what’s happened…”

“V-Vlad…!”

The general was silent for a moment… then fleetingly kissed the top of Danny’s head, cradling the boy’s neck firmly, but gently.  “I know you wish to fulfill your duty to China,” he continued, murmuring into his dark hair.  “But if you find someone that makes you truly happy, I beg you to choose love over duty!  I’ve never had the choice… and I want you to be happy…”

The prince continued to cry for long moments, wrapped up protectively in Vlad’s arms.  He shivered and trembled, clinging to Vlad’s front as he wept years and years worth of grief.  

But finally, the last of his tears fell, and he regained control of his voice.  “V-Vlad…  Here, u-under your command…”

He looked up at the man, slightly swollen blue eyes BEGGING Vlad to understand.  “I AM happy… the h-happiest I’ve ever b-been is… here, with y-you…”

Vlad nodded, smiling softly into the air.  “I’m glad, I truly am…” he murmured.  “I just wish there was a way to guarantee your safety here, under my command…”

Danny sighed softly, eyes squeezed closed.  The man STILL did not understand.  But perhaps that was for the best… for now.  Maybe one day, he would get Vlad himself to feel something in return, maybe he would act on it… Danny could only hope so, since he was far too inexperienced to even fathom what he could do to get Vlad to see his true feelings.  No, this wasn’t like one of his cousin’s romance novels, where the big strong man would get jealous or possessive and make a move.  Vlad wasn’t the type… at least, Danny didn’t think he was.

After a moment, the prince looked back up at Vlad with a shaky smile, wiping away his tears.  “I don’t want safety Vlad, I want you to teach me, train me.  You taught me strategy and warfare and logic back at the palace, but now, I need you to teach me in a more physical sense.  My people deserve a ruler willing to fight for them, to join the ranks of the army to better know his soldiers and what they do, what they need, fight alongside them as their brother.”

He smiled softly, ducking his head slightly.  “I wish I could tell my grandfather I’m alright, but knowing him, he already knows… and he would be proud of my choices…  I hope.”

Vlad chuckled.  “Everyone thought he was mad whenever the report came that you had been taken, and he said simply that you were not dead,” he said.  “Emperor Clockwork can be eccentric at moments… but aside from you, there’s no man I would rather die for.”

He gave Danny a little smile, actually meeting his eyes this time.  He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something… then stopped, eyes widening slightly.

Slowly… he closed his mouth.

“Danwei, I…”

Vlad hesitated – then leaned down again, gently kissing the prince’s hair once more.  “Sometimes I wonder if you know truly how much I care for you…” he whispered.  “Please.  Fight.  Do what you feel is right.  But please, please, be safe… For me.”

Danny stared up at him for a moment, something like wonder and hope gleaming deep in his blue eyes.  Finally, he smiled softly at Vlad, before reaching up and tilting the man’s head down so he could place a gentle kiss of his own against his forehead.

“Only if you promise to do the same, my general.”  

Danny shyly pulled away – then his eyes went wide as he realised what a bold move he had just made.  He stood up, turning his bright, blushing pink face away as he shifted, preparing to leave.  “I… I should go!  I need to uh, s-sleep and… and I have to wash out the d-dye, so I… um…”

The poor boy floundered for words, face flushing brighter and brighter in his growing embarrassment.

Vlad nodded hurriedly.  “Yes, yes, of course.  Sleep is important,” he agreed.  “Just, ah, one more question.”

He raised his brows at Danny.  “Those young men who have adopted you into their little band.  Do you like them?  Are they… suitable friends?”

Danny flushed a little further at his obvious concern, finding his protective nature more than a little endearing now that things had been cleared up.  Oh gods, he had it bad…

He smiled, nodding.  “They are kind and energetic and helpful.  They are some of the best men I have ever met!  They respect you and try to help each other and others, even newcomers like me.  I never thought I would be so easily welcomed.”

He shrugged, smiling at his shoes shyly.  “I’ve never had friends before, let alone three in the span of two days…”

Vlad looked at the floor – seeming distracted.  “…Very well.”

He nodded approvingly.  “In that case, I’m glad.”

The general glanced at Danny, giving him an encouraging smile.  “Sleep well, Dan,” he said.  “And please feel free to come speak with me whenever you need to.”

Danny nodded in agreement with a small smile and wished the general goodnight, turning to leave.  But before he could he paused a moment.  The prince turned back to look at Vlad again, a troubled expression on his face.  “Vlad?”

Vlad turned, raising his brows at the prince.  “Yes?”

The boy bit his plump bottom lip for a moment, seeming a little unsure.  “You… you’re my friend, right?”

The boy looked up at him, blue eyes big and wet.  “I always felt you were… my… my first friend.  I just… um… I wanted you to know that… that I trust you, more than anyone.  And I respect you and value you and lo–listen to you… you are my… closest friend.”

He smiled shyly.  “I wanted you to know that…”

Vlad laughed, gazing down at the floor.  “Thank you, your majesty,” he murmured.  “You are my only real friend in the world, so… the feeling is mutual.”

Danny couldn’t help but feel that pang once again, that his true feelings just weren’t reaching the general.  He exhaled softly, wished him another goodnight, and then slipped out of the tent.  Outside all was quiet, the soldiers already turning in for the night since the sun had started to set and Danny knew he only had a little time to go wash his hair so he could get a good amount of sleep.  

But still, he hesitated not far from outside Vlad’s tent, head tilted back as he stared up at the stars forlornly.

“I love you, Vladimir Masters…”  Danny breathed to the crisp wind, spilling his secrets to the silent stars.  “If only you knew how much…”

He sighed, shook his head, and then continued on his way through the silent camp towards his tent.  Maybe one day he would have the guts to say such words to the man himself, but for now, he would simply whisper them to the moon and stars…


	6. Chapter Six

Far away, in the silence of the night and new-fallen snow…

A faint noise thundered through the air, drawing closer and closer. The sound of hundreds of horses, their hooves tearing through the softening snow as they traveled south – and all of them, and their hun riders, were led by the massive, intimidating figure of Pariah Dark.

The huge hun growled with each thud of his enormous stallion’s hooves, pulses of pain still shooting through his chest from the slice of Danwei’s bladed fan. Anger flowed through his veins – swearing vengeance and all-consuming pain on the pretty little prince that had DARED to do this to him –!

Suddenly, the screech of a falcon made him look up.

Pariah sneered at the sight of his hunting bird – a fierce creature with red-tipped wings, and a hooked beak made for tearing flesh from bone – soaring towards him. It landed on his forearm and extended its leg; a piece of paper had been tied to it. 

Another, one of Pariah’s captains labeled the Fright Knight, trotted his horse closer. “Sir?” he asked as their leader opened the message and read it.

“…A training camp is close by.”

The enormous man handed the message to his secondary. “Take a small party to wipe them out,” he snarled, voice deep and rough. 

“Yes, sir.”

Pariah grinned. “And if you find that little runt, bring him to me… ALIVE.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

“So, what’d the general want?”

“What?” Danny panted, glancing at Tucker over the big horse they were grooming together. 

Today they were going over the care of horses; everyone had to learn, but judging from the way Tucker seemed to barely touch the big animal’s fur and it would be gleaming and shining, he’d done this before. Today was Danny’s turn to get disapproving glances from Lancer.

Tucker waited until their captain was out of earshot again before he resumed talking. “Y’know, why’d he ask you to come to his tent?” he asked. “Did you get in trouble?”

Danny floundered for an answer for a moment, before finally thinking of something suitable to say. “No, um… I said I was from the city, right? He uh… he knew my grandfather, so he wanted to just check in, I guess?”

He winced, knowing that was a poor excuse, so he fumbled along with just a little more information, hoping that would appease Tucker’s curiosity. “He uh, also wanted to ask me about the fans! Yeah, um, fighting fans have kinda, you know, died out a little in use for the army, since very few men have the right build to use them and um, he was asking me where I learned the skills? He’s uh, very thorough, as a general I mean, learning about his men and all…”

The boy suddenly released a heavy sigh, glaring at his poorly strapped saddle. “Okay, help, please? I can groom and feed a horse just fine, I love the animals, but I have NO idea what I’m doing right now…”

“Sure! But you owe me one of your dumplings tonight.”

Tucker hurried over. “Okay, you put it like this, then like this and this and done!” he grinned brightly, turning to show Danny. “See?”

Danny frowned, undoing the straps so he could try again from scratch. He made it through the first few steps before floundering again. “Okay, wait, I got that first bit, what was next? Over then under, or under then over?”

“No, no, no, if you do it like that you’re gonna have a beard longer than YOU are before it’s done! Here.”

The prince backed away as Tucker took over again – only for a shadow to fall over them. “Well, well!” Lancer frowned. “Helping another soldier. That’s good. But will you always be there to help him?”

Tucker shrunk in a little on himself. “N-No, sir.”

Lancer harrumphed and walked between the two, scrutinizing the straps. “…Hm!”

He glanced, surprised, at Tucker. “You’ve done an exceptional job here. Where did you say you were from?”

The boy stood up straight, his eyes straight ahead. “Fong Wen, sir!”

Lancer’s expression changed, concern flickering in his face. “Ah. I suppose that would explain it,” the captain said. He nodded to Tucker quietly. “My condolences.”

“None needed, sir!” the boy replied smartly, saluting.

The captain glanced between Danny and Tucker, then turned and walked away, waving dismissively. “Carry on.”

Danny waited till Lancer was gone before moving back over to study the straps again. Oh, AROUND and then under, okay, that made sense. Danny started to take over where Tucker left off, smiling proudly as he finally got it right. It was a little sloppier than Tucker’s, but now that he knew what to do, with a little practice he could get better. 

He patted the stallion’s flank, smiling up at the animal, before turning to look at Tucker with a curious expression. “So… you’re from Fong Wen? I’m um… sorry, if I don’t understand much, like I said before, my grandfather kept me pretty sheltered…”

Tucker rubbed the big horse’s withers and patted it, too. “Yeah. Fong Wen is– WAS one of the towns that bred and sold horses to the Emperor,” he explained. He chuckled. “We used to make jokes that we’re part horse ourselves, which is how we do it so well!”

His smile flickered slightly. “I mean, uh, DID it so well,” he amended, glancing back at the horse.

Danny froze, turning big eyes on Tucker. “Oh… oh no, was… was Fong Wen one of the towns near the border? Oh, Tucker… I’m…”

Danny cut himself off, shaking his head. No, Tucker wouldn’t want apologies, they meant less than nothing here. Instead, he met Tucker’s gaze with a steady one of his own, smiling encouragingly. “Um… would you tell me about Fong Wen? I’d love to hear about it! Uh, it was a pretty great town, right? It had to be, for the Emperor to buy your horses!”

“You’re darn right it was!” Tucker smirked, puffing out his skinny chest proudly. “Wheat and rice fields and grass as far as the eye could see! The horses were big and some of the KIDS were stronger than fully grown men that didn’t grow up in Fong Wen! We were an amazing town!”

He pointed to himself proudly. “You should’ve seen me before! I had more muscle than General Vladimir!”

Danny’s head tilted back as he laughed at the mental image, hand moving automatically as he brushed his horse down. “Hahaha! I’m sure you did!”

“You bet I did!” Tucker boasted, swaggering around. “The ladies were just lining up to get a piece of THIS~”

“Alright, hot stuff, that’s enough!” Danny sniggered. “Too much of that and you’ll make me faint~ Now come on! You still need to show me how the bridle goes on! I keep getting it upside down!”

“Oh, okay okay, give it here.”

The boy showed Danny how to put in the metal piece, continuing his story. “Anyway, Fong Wen was pretty far north and it was one of the first towns the Huns got into. They were low on food and supplies after getting over the wall, and we put up a fight! You should’ve SEEN us! I saw my dad crush one of those bastard’s heads with a ROCK! I bet we took down half their army! You know, before… the rest happened.”

Danny sobered up then, looking down. “You did…”

At the weird look he got he quickly covered himself. “I mean, I heard about the fall of the northern towns, not much details, but my grandfather proudly told me how… how the townspeople had greatly diminished the Hun army.”

Tucker snorted lightly. “You and your grandfather! Weird how you say you’re sheltered but you know all this stuff.”

The boy fixed Danny’s hands and helped guide the bridle under the stallion’s tongue. “Anyway, after we beat back their army a few times, they decided to cut off the supply wagons that came in. We stayed strong at first, but y’know. No food and stuff, it uh…”

Tucker shrugged his skinny shoulders. “It eventually took its toll. And they… yeah. They got inside and started doing really bad things to us… I got away because of my mom. She held them off while I ran. She was an awesome lady, my mom…”

He sighed, frowning. “I managed to get to some mountain town, and it took me about a month to get back on my feet. By then the news of that one phantom prince getting killed had reached us and… that was just the last straw!! I wasn’t going to stand for this!! So I came here to enlist, eat, and kill huns!”

Danny’s hands fumbled a bit as once again the death of the prince was brought up. Kwan had mentioned it before, but it still shocked him to hear that so many of these soldiers were here because of HIM…

He swallowed thickly, shrugging his shoulders. “Um, yeah, I guess I’m here for that too. You know, defend our people? I um… I didn’t know about the prince till I got here, you know…”

He glanced over at Tucker, smiling weakly. “I was taken when they attacked the palace. I was too close I guess and um… they thought I was a woman, so they took me. I woke up in their camp, just before they found out I was a boy. So they gave me to Pariah.”

Tucker choked, staring at Danny. “They gave you to PARIAH?! WHAT THE HELL?!”

“SHHH!!” Danny hissed, wincing as a few of the soldiers around them turned to look at Danny with wide, shocked eyes. A moment later and they started whispering among each other, causing Danny to sag a little. “Well, that’s gonna spread like wildfire, thanks for that…”

He shook his head, sighing. “Yeah, they gave me to Pariah. The huns aren’t like us, they don’t care much for love and relationships, focusing more on sex and BREEDING… but Pariah didn’t care much, and he likes… likes boys like me, I guess…”

He shuddered, rubbing at his neck where he remembered Pariah grabbing him, less than a week ago. He shook the thoughts away and smirked up at Tucker. “He took me to his tent, but that man was a bit of a fool. He misjudged me because I’m small and ‘pretty’, so he thought me meek and weak. Too bad for him too, cause they failed to search me for a weapon~”

“Hoo hah!” Tucker crowed. He punched Danny in the shoulder. “We got a badass over here! You gotta tell me the WHOLE STORY later, THAT’S something you’ll be telling your kid’s kid’s kids!!”

Danny laughed lightly. “Yeah, I guess so… at the time, I gotta admit, I was scared SHITLESS…”

The prince smiled briefly at the use of a swear word. “B-But… I don’t know, the way he talked to me…”

He frowned, face darkening. “He said such… horrible things. Made me feel… dirty… I was so ANGRY! That anger, I think, is what helped me in the end.”

Tucker slung an arm around Danny’s shoulders. “Man, I’m considering you an honorary citizen of Fong Wen! You’re awesome!!” he cackled. Danny squirmed and fussed, but couldn’t help but laugh. Tucker mussed his hair and shoved him with a grin, then pointed at him, his face playfully stern. “But that means I have to have your horse-grooming skills up to expert levels! So pay attention~!”

The prince laughed, playfully saluting the other boy. “Sir yes, SIR!”

Tucker puffed up his chest again, smiling. “I like that sound of that~”

Suddenly, the galloping of hooves and the jingle of reins reached them from a distance. The boys glanced around just in time to watch a man ride in across the field and approach Lancer. “Who’s that?” Danny whispered. He spotted the imperial seal on the back of the man’s uniform.

“Messenger,” Tucker whispered back.

All the trainees watched, transfixed, as the man on the horse gave Lancer a scroll, then wheeled his horse away and trotted off back the way he had come. Their instructor opened it – eyes running over the ink…

Danny saw his eyes widen.

Lancer closed the scroll and turned to his class. “Unsaddle your horses and take them back to pasture!” he ordered. “You are dismissed for today! Use this time wisely and not just to goof around!”

Danny watched as Lancer rode away back into camp, clearly heading towards the general’s tent. “I wonder what that was about…”

He really wanted to follow, wanted to see Vlad and ask him what was wrong, but he figured he would have to wait till the night and hope he had his chance to ask then. He glanced over at Tucker, fingers fumbling at the straps of his saddle. “Hey, you wanna do a little sparring after this?” the prince asked. “I haven’t had a chance to practice with my fans yet and I’ve seen how you’ve been eyeing those staffs.”

“Sure, fellow Fong Wenian!” Tucker snorted. “As long as you promise not to kick my ass too hard!”

“Haha! Deal!”

 

~*~*~

 

“The hun army has advanced,” Lancer told his general, bowed before him. “They’ve split off into two main parties, the smaller half heading in this direction and another making for the Shin Shu pass! The Emperor is sending backup troops but they don’t know if they’ll make it in time…”

Vlad stared down at his captain.

The class of advanced heavy class boys that the general had been teaching – Kwan among them – glanced at one another worriedly. 

The general paused for a moment… and then began to unwrap the bandages around his hands.

“Gather all the advanced classes we have, along with any intermediates that are willing to risk their lives,” Vlad ordered. “We ride at dawn.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

“YOU TWO ARE DOING WHAT?!”

Dash grinned through a mouthful of rice. “We’re gonna be hitting some huns HARD and FAST, what’s it sound like?!” the blonde boy said. “Kwan and I leave tomorrow morning! We should be back in a week or something like that.”

Danny hadn’t even touched his rice, suddenly losing his appetite. He was afraid something like this would happen; the huns were trying to come here, trying to kill as many recruits as possible…

Danny frowned then, brows furrowed. “The huns are dangerous, ruthless, but I don’t think the group coming here is that big. I was at their camps, they lost a lot of men coming down through the north and more from attacking the palace… I think, this is mainly a distraction so that Pariah and the rest can get through the pass… and to see how many of us they can kill off…”

He glanced back to Kwan and Dash. “Who all are going?”

Dash opened his mouth to answer, but Kwan shoved a dumpling into it and answered instead. “All the advanced are required, but if you’re an intermediate you can volunteer to come,” the big boy replied soberly.

Danny’s expression hardened, nodding. “Then I’m volunteering tomorrow. The more men, the better, right?”

Tucker looked at him worriedly. “Dan, I don’t know about that!”

Dash nodded, finally swallowing the dumpling. “Sorry, man, they’re not gonna let you come. You’re kinda–”

“You can’t even saddle a horse properly.”

“Yeah!”

“I’m an intermediate rank!” Danny said with a scowl. “I can at LEAST volunteer. I… I’ll understand if the general himself tells me I need to stay behind, but it won’t sit right with me not to at least do that much. I may not be ready, but I’m WILLING!”

Dash and Kwan busied themselves with their rice and dumplings. Tucker looked a little torn.

After a moment of quiet, finally, the boy gave Danny a look. “Well, General Vladimir knows your grandfather, right?” he asked. “You could at least ask him.”

Dash sat straight up. “General Vladimir knows your granddad?!”

Danny flushed, scowling at Tucker mildly. “First you practically shout the Pariah thing, NOW this? Do you have it out for me or something? I’m gonna be part of the rumor mill for WEEKS.”

He glanced over at Dash, nodding slightly. “Yeah, um, that’s one of the reasons he saw me last night, just checking in. And stuff…”

Dash raised his eyebrows and shook his head disbelievingly. “Alright, fine, kid!” he said, shrugging. “Go ask him if you want, but I’m telling you, he’s not going to let you come.”

Danny sighed, glaring down at his half eaten bowl of rice. “Yeah, I know… It still won’t sit right with me though, if I don’t at least ask.”

He hurried to swallow the rest of his dinner and stood up. “Well, no time like the present! Talk to you guys later, okay?”

With a nod to the three, he turned and headed towards the general’s tent.

 

~*~

 

“Absolutely not.”

The boy had hardly gotten the request out of his mouth before the general had shot him down. He had been expecting it, really, but STILL. Danny sagged, crossing his arms with a pout. “Damn, I knew you would say that…”

“Was that a swear, Danwei? Gods, the soldiers are rubbing off on you already.”

Vlad finished cleaning his chest plate and snapped out the rag, frowning at Danny. His hair was pulled up in a soldier’s bun, and the general was barechested in preparation to go to bed. “Either way, if you knew what my answer would be, why did you bother to ask?” he replied wearily, placing it back on its rack. He picked up his sword and began to clean that, too.

Danny sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I guess… I don’t know, I needed you to know I was WILLING to go. I mean, I know I’m not the most skilled soldier here or anything, but it still wouldn’t have felt right NOT to volunteer…”

He moved closer to the fire, sitting down with a huff. “I really do have a long way to go, huh…”

Vlad gave him a halfhearted smile. “Yes, you do.”

They gazed at each other for a moment – then the man returned to cleaning the straight, heavy blade of his sword. “Dan, do you know WHY I made you an intermediate when I really should have placed you in beginner classes?” 

Danny stiffened at that, eyes narrowing. //If that man has been doing me FAVORS I’m gonna kick his ass, general or NOT!//

“No… why?” he demanded.

“Because you know a lot of things some seasoned soldiers do not,” Vlad informed him, his cool blue eyes reflected in the blade. “You know when to surrender a job to someone who could handle it better. You know not to take a weapon you couldn’t handle. You are a natural-born leader.”

Danny sputtered a little, then blushed, ducking his head. “I… hadn’t thought of that.”

Vlad wiped the blade lengthwise and then raised an eyebrow at Danny. “However, you are also foolhardy and stubborn whenever your country or your loved ones are concerned. Sometimes you think you can contribute to a cause that will chew you up and spit you out, at least as you are.”

The general sighed and continued cleaning his blade. “There used to be a test for boys like you to go into battle, but recently it has fallen to the commanding officer to judge character…” he muttered.

Danny had bristled when Vlad brought up his stubbornness, but he brushed it aside, knowing it was pointless to argue over a matter that he himself even knew was true. He huffed, resting his chin on his palm as he watched Vlad polish his sword. “What test was that?”

The general frowned – then sighed and rubbed his forehead. 

He put down his sword. “Come with me, Dan.”

Danny stood up quickly, brows furrowed in worry. Had he upset the man somehow? Maybe he been asking too many questions again? “O-okay…”

The prince got up, following Vladimir out of the tent, back to the bonfire, where an enormous pole – thick as a man and thrice the height of any tent in the camp – stood at the edge of the firelight. The soldiers went quiet, curious eyes on the general and the small, blue-eyed boy that followed him, as Vlad stopped at the base.

Danny looked up at the pole, head cocking to the side like a curious puppy. “This… looks familiar…”

Vlad nodded at Danny. “It should,” he whispered. “It was part of your army history classes.”

The general then raised his voice, letting it ring throughout the camp. “Many years ago, before some of you were even born, this would be the test to tell if an untrained soldier was ready to go into battle!” Vlad announced. “An arrow was fired into the top of this pole. Then, two bronze weights, representing discipline and strength, were tied to the soldier’s wrists. If he could retrieve the arrow and deliver it to his commanding officer, he was allowed to join the fight.”

Danny gazed up at the pole in wonder, imagining young men such as himself trying to reach the top. “Why is it not used anymore? Oh…” He paused in thought, frowning slightly. “Because physical strength… doesn’t always show the true inner strength of one’s character… right?”

He smiled lightly, shrugging a shoulder. “Still, such an absolutely HORRENDOUS test, sounds interesting. Did you have to do it? Before you were a general, sir?”

Vlad grinned. “HA! Yes! Yes, I did.”

He turned to the rest of the trainees. “You lads want to hear a story?!” he called.


	7. Chapter Seven

_He turned to the rest of the trainees.  “You lads want to hear a story?!” he called._

 

The response was enormous.  Boys tripped over each other to take their places around the campfire, eyes bright as they gazed eagerly at their general.  Danny laughed behind his hand a little, remembering how eager he had been for stories from the general back when he was a much smaller boy.  He flushed a little as he sat down on a nearby stump, realising that even now… he was just eager for Vlad to speak with him at all.

He looked up at the man, watching how the firelight danced across his features, making his silver hair look like warm gold and his dark eyes bright with mirth.  He was a very striking, handsome man…

//Love is such an unfair emotion…//  Danny pondered, watching the man as he circled the fire.  //All consuming and destructive, no choice in what the heart wants… but its such a sweet, addictive feeling…//

He sighed, brushing away such thoughts.

“Now, I am going to be confirming some rumors about me in this little story, so you can write your parents and sweethearts on how much of a scoundrel I am~” Vlad joked.

The boys laughed, slapping each other high fives.  

Vlad chuckled.  “Anyway…”

He sat down on a log between Danny and Dash; the latter looked like he was about to faint from excitement.  “Who here was not born in China?” he asked the crowd, raising his hand.  Other hands went up.  “A few.  Good, good.  How many of you came to China by yourselves?”

After a moment, the other hands went down.

Vlad kept his raised.  

He gave them a little smirk, then lowered it, clasping his hands before him.  “You can say what you like about the northern country from where my father was born, although I’m sure you – like me – really know very little about it other than the national export seems to be beards and ice~”

The boys laughed again.

Danny just smiled, pulling his knees to his chest and resting his chin on them, watching Vlad with a soft, fond expression.  But then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Dash staring at the general – but not in worshipful admiration like he usually did.

His expression was anxious – like he was about to hear a story he knew he wouldn’t like.

Danny frowned slightly, hugging his legs a little tighter.  There had been a few stories Vlad had told him in his lessons, stories about death and loss and no real happy ending, stories he never liked but needed to hear, to learn from.  He had a bad feeling that this was going to be one of those stories…

Vlad glanced at Danny, then gave him a reassuring smile, patting the boy on the shoulder.  He looked up again, addressing the trainees.  “Ironic as it may seem, I was born during a time of war,” he told them.  “My mother had been enslaved not long before having me.  I never knew the fate of my father.  Even in your country, that would have placed me on the lowest rung of social outcasts, and in my country, it was worse.  Eventually the war ended, followed by a time of famine and sickness.”

By now, the boys had fallen silent.  Danny stared, wide-eyed, up at Vlad as the general continued.  “My hair is not aged this color, gentlemen,” he informed them sternly.  “It has been this way as long as I remember, ever since that time of sickness.  That is truth.”

Whispers erupted amongst the boys.

“The disease…” Danny muttered.

Vlad nodded subtly at the boy.  “Yes.  I’ve had this hair from a very young age,” he declared to the assembly.  “It is the product of war, and strife, and it always reminded me to keep going.  I was a slave for the first ten years of my life, so gods know that I needed all the reminders I could get.”

He turned his eyes to the fire.  “One day there was a winter storm, and I lost my way back from carrying firewood.  I wandered for days, until finally I collapsed in the snow.”

The little prince had a sober expression on his face as he watched the general, resting his cheek against his knee.  The disease was something his grandfather had actually told him.  Danny had been too nervous, too polite to ask Vlad about his hair color, so he asked his grandfather.  The emperor didn’t go into detail, even though he likely could have, and explained to Danny that Vlad had gotten sick when he was younger, and that it had turned his hair into the silver locks Danny saw today.  When he was a child, Danny had actually been disappointed, thinking that maybe the man he admired so much had been born with it, just like him.  

Those childish thoughts soon changed into those of admiration, though.  Vlad had fought through sickness, been changed by it, and achieved so much!  He had come so far.  Danny truly admired him for that, and hoped one day he would even have half the strength the general did.

Vlad glanced at Danny again, blue on blue.  “I didn’t know exactly what happened, not for a long time,” he said, smiling fondly.  “But eventually, I found out that I was spotted by a young princess of China, who was traveling in a caravan with her father, Emperor Clockwork.”

Oooohs and aaaaahs filled the air.

Danny remained silent, a small part of him not sure he wanted to hear more about the love Vlad used to hold for his mother.  But a much larger part desired to hear more, wanted to hear what his mother was like from the general’s lips, instead of the cruel tutors.  At least here, the words would be spoken with love.  Even if the love wasn’t for him, exactly…

“They could have very easily ignored me, let me die on the side of the road, but as you can see–”

Vlad gestured to himself, smiling.  “They didn’t.”

The big man stood up; his chest swelled with nostalgia.  “They took me to a nearby village, where I then worked for four more years.  Life was better.  I was in control of my life, and I was much happier.  I even stuck a few pigs~!  I was fourteen when I traveled to the capital, thinking I could just walk through the front doors of the palace and express my gratitude.”

“Did you express it?!” shouted a boy in the back.

A loud whistle split the air.  All the young men laughed.  

Vlad chuckled and waved them down.  “Not for a few more years,” he admitted.

“OHHHHHHHHH!!” the boys roared.  Whistles and catcalls filled the air.

Danny was confused for a moment, before the innuendo finally sunk in.  He flushed hotly and ducked his head with an angry pout.  The prince knew that Vlad was far from a virgin, unlike himself, but he REALLY didn’t want to hear about him and his mother in THAT sense!

“All right, calm down.”

The men settled down at his command.  Vlad stepped forward, beginning to trek a slow circle around the fire.  “Eventually, I decided that the best way to gain their attention was to join their army!” he said.  “That was even more difficult, though, for it wasn’t that easy for a little Russian fourteen-year-old to join the ranks of the Chinese army, even during a time of war.  It was a long journey, filled with prejudice and ridicule and cruel words.”

Vlad stopped, hands clasped behind his back, and surveyed his troops.  “They refused to let me join in battle, even though I had proved myself in every other way.  Was that fair?!”

“NO, SIR!” came the resounding answer.

“Well, life isn’t fair sometimes,” Vlad replied evenly, making an elegant motion with his hand.  “But I was young.  I wanted to fight.”

He turned smartly, pinning Danny with his eyes.  “I wanted to PROVE myself.”

Danny blinked up at him, surprised to suddenly find himself speared by those knowing eyes.  He blushed faintly, the pink hopefully hidden by the glow of the bonfire; so this was why – no, HOW – the man had been so… so understanding with him.  

It was because, in the end, he really was one of the few to truly understand.

“How did you do it?” Danny breathed, eyes wide with wonder.  “How did you prove yourself, in the end?”

Vlad smirked… and with a sharp motion, he pointed at the giant pole.  

“I retrieved the arrow.”

Danny looked up at the pole, along with all the other soldiers.  Whispers of wonder spread through the group, while a knowing smile spread across Danny’s face.  “That must have been a sight.”

General Vladimir straightened up with pompous pride, smirking.  “You should have seen their faces.”

He lowered his head, chuckling, and walked back to his seat.  “However!” he told his troops, raising his voice again.  “I did not survive my first battle because of my strength alone!  I survived because of my intelligence, my swiftness, and most of all, my comrades!”

Vlad lowered his voice to a loud faux whisper.  “Didn’t stop me from getting cut in the last ten minutes and passing out of the way back to camp, but…”

He was met with the laughter he had been trying for.  

Vlad smiled halfheartedly.  “The point is – be smart!  Stay in formation!” he told them, looking from boy to boy.  “Not everyone will survive this battle.  But if you follow my leadership, and never allow your courage to fail, we WILL WIN THE WAR!”

“YES, SIR!”

“We will win HONOR!  And GLORY!”

“YES, SIR!”

Vlad raised his fist high.  “And we will win the right to call ourselves soldiers of CHINA!”

“YES, SIR!!”  Danny cried along with the other soldiers, beaming at the other man as the others clapped and hollered and carried on.  It always amazed him how Vlad could stir up such spirit, such pride and ambition, in his men.

He got up from the log, about to approach Vlad, but the man was already surrounded by other soldiers and Danny shrunk back, not really wanting to draw attention to himself.  Besides, the men would likely be heading back to their tents soon.  They did leave at dawn after all…

Danny frowned for a moment, and then he turned away from the fire, as worry plagued his mind.  His new friends would be going off to fight.  

His love… would be going as well.  

Danny found he had a hard time actually accepting such thoughts, no matter how true and rational he knew they were.  He couldn’t stay much longer now, and he knew it was cowardly to leave without saying anything, but he just… couldn’t.

He went back to his tent and retrieved his towel and torn scarf, preparing to go down to the river and wash out the dye for the night.  But before he left, he stopped by the general’s tent once more.  It was empty, like he had assumed, but he still entered.  He came over to Vlad’s lone writing desk and pulled aside a small scrap of paper.  In fluid writing, Danny wrote a small note, wishing his general safe passage and a blessing from him, that he may stay safe and return whole and successful.  He left it on the man’s pillow, and then snuck back and away, towards the river.  

He knew that Vlad was skilled, strong, and that he would return victorious!  He had to!

Then why did fear and doubt cling so tightly to his heart?

 

~*~*~

 

A gentle hand touched Danny’s shoulder.  “My prince…” came the faint whisper.

Danny murmured softly in his sleep, desperately trying to cling to his lovely dream, only for the real thing to awaken him.  He blinked up at the blurred form of his general, confusion and sleepiness making his voice soft and slurred.  “G-general?  Did… did I oversleep?”

“No, no…” Vlad murmured softly.  He gently touched Danny’s hair, almost wishing it was its natural pale white, so it would look completely like his prince… but nothing could really be done for that.  “It’s before dawn.  The troops and I are leaving soon, for battle.”

His lips curved up, cradling the boy’s cheek in his palm.  “I got your note.”

The prince blinked, then smiled dazzlingly.  “Oh!  I hoped you would…”

He blushed slightly, ducking his head.  “I mean, I wanted to say goodbye last night but the soldiers were there and it wasn’t proper and you needed to get some sleep cause you had a long journey tomorrow and I didn’t want to take up your time–”

“Hush, my lad,” Vlad chuckled.  “I understand.”

He stroked Danny’s cheek absently as he gazed at him.  “I guess, I suppose… I also wanted to see you.  I have no intention of letting these hun scum even touch me on the battlefield, but… you never really plan for these things, so…”

Vlad paused, glancing warily at the boy’s sleepy face.  It wouldn’t be terrible if he just waited, would it…?

No.  He had told himself he would never go off to battle with an unsettled heart.

He leaned forward, and softly as a feather… kissed his prince.  

The rest of the sleep still clogging Danny’s mind quickly vaporized at the first touch of the man’s lips against his.  His bright blue eyes were wide in shock, but quickly slid closed in pure bliss as he clumsily tried to press back against his first kiss.  

He raised a small, shaking hand and placed it against Vlad’s chest, just above his heart so he could feel it beating beneath his palm… strong and REAL.

He soon had to pull back from the kiss, his lungs gasping for breath due to his inexperience and his cheeks flushed pink along with his plump, swollen lips.  

The young prince reached up and cupped Vlad’s stubbled cheek in his hands, looking up into his dark eyes in wonder and hope.  “Tell me this isn’t a dream.  For so many nights, for so many years, I’ve dreamt of your touch.  Tell me, that this is not one of those nights…” he whispered.  “I don’t think I could bear it otherwise…”

Vladimir stared back at him – stunned, despite his actions – and gently covered Danny’s small hands with his own.  “It isn’t a dream, my prince…”

He hesitated, brows furrowed in conflict and then leaned forward again, slowly trailing his hands down the young man’s arms.  “The way you spoke to me two nights ago, the things you said, and the way you looked at me last night… all of that came together with the note you left and I did not know, but I had to be sure before I left…” he whispered, dark eyes gazing imploringly down into Danny’s wide blue ones.  “It was me that you loved once upon a time, wasn’t it…?”

The little prince nodded weakly, his face hot as a shaky little laugh spilled from his lips.  It was still so hard to believe that this was happening.  That his general – his Vladimir – was here with him now.

“Yes…”  he breathed.  “I… I had a crush on you, when I was younger.  But it just grew and grew and before I even realised it, I was so in love with you.  I… I tried to put it aside, I never thought… I never thought you could possibly want me!  Despite all your kindness and your honest care for me, my insecurities still lead me to believe I was unworthy of any kind of love, especially yours!”

He lowered his head, biting his bottom lip.  “No suitor has ever asked my grandfather for my hand.  I’ve only met possible lords and ladies through the royal matchmaker, but I always botched it up and… and…”

Danny sagged a little.  “The things she said, only seemed to cement in me that I was just… unmatchable, unlovable.  Even though my grandfather told me to just wait, that he KNEW there was someone out there, that would come forward and ask for me, it was still hard to believe him!  And even still…

“My love for you, never died, but grew… so painfully, it grew.”

Vlad sighed quietly, placing his forehead on Danny’s.  “This is such an inappropriate relationship…” he whispered.  “But… I can’t help but feel this sensation that it is RIGHT…”

Danny pouted up at Vlad, huffing.  “There isn’t anything inappropriate about this!  I love you!”

He flushed a little at his outburst, backtracking a little.  “I mean, you DO need to ask grandfather for my hand, but I know he would say yes!”

He pressed back against Vlad more firmly, nuzzling against him.  “And you will, won’t you?  When all this is over, when China is safe and we are home again… will you ask for me?  I w-w… I want you to!”

“Yes.”

Vlad nodded quietly, hesitantly wrapping his arms around the beautiful royal nestled against him.  “I will…” he murmured, a soft flutter of contentment blooming in his heart.  “I will ask for your hand, unworthy as I am…”

“You will never be unworthy, my general,” Danny murmured, clinging to him.  “Not to me, and not in the eyes of your army or the emperor.  You, are MORE than worthy of me and of China…”

He smiled weakly.  “I just hope you can bear with me as I deal with the council and the advisers!  They will accept you, but once they learn you honestly favor me… we might have to deal with some of their superstition once more.  They have been pushing for grandfather to just give me to whatever noble or royal they see fit to put on the throne–”

“I never intended to let that happen, not before and most certainly not now.”

Vlad pulled back, taking Danny’s hand and kissing it firmly.  “Thank you, your majesty…” he whispered against his knuckles.

Danny giggled.  “Danny!  If you intend to ask for my hand, you better start calling me by my name!”

The general gazed up at him – dazzled by the boy’s beautiful white smile – and then beamed at him.  He leaned up, capturing Danny’s lips in one last kiss.  “I shall try to remember,” he whispered.

The prince giggled again, returning the kiss eagerly.  “You better~”

His mood quickly sobered and he clung to Vlad for a moment before finally letting go.  “Be safe out there, my general… you better come back to me.  I will find a way to enter the spirit world itself and drag you back if I must.  If people insist on calling me the phantom prince, then I will give them true reason to do so.”

He glared playfully at the man, even though there was a hint of hard truth within them.  “So don’t you test me, sir~”

Vlad chuckled, pecking Danny on the cheek, then the lips again.  “I wouldn’t dare~” he purred mischievously, wrapping his arms around the boy’s waist and pulling their bodies flush together.  He kissed the blue-eyed boy passionately – relishing the feeling of Danny’s heart beating against his own…

Finally, he loosened his grip, and allowed the prince to pull back for air.  “And from now on, when we are alone, call me Vladimir…” he cooed, touching Danny’s chin.  “Or just Vlad.  It feels more… intimate… And I like that…”

The boy looked absolutely ravished, even from one kiss such as that.  His hair was mussed and his eyes were lidded and glazed, plump red lips parted slightly as he panted for breath.  He had practically melted in the general’s arms during that kiss, now laying in his arms so languidly while he stared up at him in a lost daze.  “O-o-okay… V-Vlad…”

The general smiled, amused by the boy’s sensitivity, and then gently pulled him from his bedroll.  “Good.  Now get dressed and come bid your friends good luck,” he told him, stroking his hair.  “Two of them ARE fighting, yes?”

Danny blinked, looking terribly confused for a moment, before his eyes widened.  “Oh!  Dash and Kwan!  I forgot to tell them goodbye last night!”

As quickly as he could, Danny pulled on his shoes and tied on the top part of his robes.  He slipped out of his tent after Vlad, trying his best to pull his hair up into a proper bun while he followed the general towards the edge of camp.  They paused just at the edge, still out of sight of the other soldiers.

Danny took this chance to stand up on his tip toes and place a final, gentle kiss upon Vlad’s cheek.  He smiled at him softly, one last goodbye, before pulling away to find his friends.  Vlad crossed his arms, sighing longingly after Danny, but went around the long way as scarlet light spilled over the camp…

“Heyyyy, look who dragged his butt outta bed to bid us sorry souls farewell!”

Danny squinted at the armored silhouette that waved at him, and smiled.  “Hey, hundan~”

The big blonde clanked over to him and hunkered down, peering at him in return.  “Oh GODS, this kid looks like he had SEX last night!!” Dash yelled, grinning.  “Who was it, kid?  Congrats!”

Danny sputtered, blushing bright pink.  “I did NOT!  I most certainly, absolutely did not!”

“Wait, what?” Kwan glanced around blearily.

The prince crossed his arms, pouting fiercely and looking agitated.  “Trust me, if I did, I’m pretty sure the whole camp would know… BUT THAT’S NOT THE POINT.”

Dash looked even more delighted at that prospect.  “Waaaaaaaaaaaait, ‘the whole camp would know,’ what does THAT MEAN~?!” he grinned.

“Nothing, it means NOTHING, oh my god!!”

Danny turned his back on Dash and walked over to Kwan.  “I’m officially only saying goodbye to Kwan now, he’s the nice one, no goodbyes for hundans.”

The blonde followed him.  “Noooo, but if I die a horrible death then you’ll regret it!” he moaned, grasping at his heart in mock pain.  “Oh!  Oh, I’m already feeling something!  Oh, oh, the pain…”

Kwan scowled at Dash.  “STOP.”

The other boy blinked at him, stunned at his usually gentle friend – then straightened.  “I was just trying to lighten the mood…” he apologized.  “I’m sorry.”

“Death isn’t something to joke about, Dash.  Not now,” Danny responded, looking at him with a solemn expression.  After a tense pause, he reached up and placed a hand on both of the larger boy’s arms, brows furrowed.  “You be safe out there, watch each other’s back.”

He grinned lightly, squeezing their arms.  “And you kick as many of those hun’s asses as you can, you hear me?”

Dash smiled and gave him a thumbs up.  “You got it!”

Kwan gave the slender boy a halfhearted pat on the shoulder.  “I’ll watch HIS back, I dunno about him~” he joked weakly.

The blonde put his hands on his hips.  “Hey!  I’m dependable!”

Danny grinned, shaking his head.  “Sure you are~”

Just then, the prince saw Vlad ride by out of the corner of his eye, the signal for all the other troops to get on their horses and prepare to ride off.  He bit his lip, desperately wanting to rush after him and say goodbye once more, kiss him and hold him one last time.  But he knew he couldn’t, not now.

After a moment, Danny turned back to his friends, seeing that Kwan had already mounted his horse and Dash was in the middle of doing the same himself.  Danny wasn’t sure what made him do it, but he suddenly found himself rushing forwards and taking Dash’s arm.

“Dash, wait a second!”

The boy looked down at him curiously, opening his mouth to reply, but Danny cut him off before he could.  “Watch out for him for me,”  he whispered, expression pleading.  “I know he doesn’t need it but… please…”

Dash blinked.  “Who?”

Danny didn’t reply, just turned to look back over Dash’s shoulder to where the general waited on top of the hill, surrounded by the red light of dawn.  His eyes became soft as he watched him, before finally turning his gaze back to Dash.

The blonde glanced over his shoulder, then back at Danny.  “General Vladimir?” he whispered.  “Why would–”

Then, Dash paused at the look in those wide blue eyes.  

A few seconds passed… then something clicked in his head.  “Yeah,” he nodded.  “Yeah, I’ll watch him.”

Danny breathed out a sigh, smiling at Dash like he had just been told that the sun was made of gold.  “Thank you… I… feel better, knowing you are there.  That both of you are there… I just…”

He laughed slightly, shaking his head.  “Sorry, I’m getting all worked up over nothing… You two, you THREE, had better come back in one piece, you hear me?”

Dash messed up Danny’s hair with his armored glove.  “Dawwww, you worried about us~?”

“Yes, you big hundan!”  Danny snapped, slapping away his hand.  “Of course I’m worried!”

“It’s okay, loverboy, we’ll kick all kinds of hunny bun~!  Maybe I’ll even bring you back a souvenir!” Dash snorted.  “How would you like Pariah Dark’s head on a stick?  You want that head, honey?  I’ll get you that head~”

Kwan slapped him upside the head.  “C’mon, Dash, they’re lining up!  Quit fooling around.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay, sheesh.  Wifey is so abusive.”

“I heard that!”

“You were meant to!  Hahaha– OW!”

Danny watched as his friends trotted off to join the line.  He shook his head in fond amusement, watching them line up into formation.  They looked just like real soldiers…

It was then that it really hit Danny, the fact that they WERE soldiers, that one of them could die.  Danny raised a hand in farewell, watching them go till the last soldier crossed over the hills and they were out of sight.  

The worry gnawed at his gut like a living thing, and he wonder if he would ever stop worrying about them…


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mild smut at the end of this chapter, just fair warning!

“Dan!  There you are!”

Danny turned around to find Tucker running up to him, breathing hard.  “Tucker?”

“Dude, you missed breakfast and you’re gonna be late for training!”

“CRAP!!”

The boys ran back into camp, passing Danny’s tent so he could grab his fans and just barely making it into the training grounds to line up.  But it seemed they needn’t have rushed, for most of the soldiers were near the center – where the bonfire had been last night – causing quite a commotion.  

Danny looked over at Tucker, curious.  “What’s going on?”

“No idea, lets find out!”

The boys walked over to the large group, pushing their way through to see what what was going on, only to stop in shock as a soldier practically fell from the sky in front of them.  Danny’s jaw dropped, looking up.  “What in the…?!”

It was then that he realised he was standing before the pole, the pole that had been played such a key part in Vlad’s story last night.  

And at the very top… was a red plumed arrow.

“He… reopened the trial.”  Danny breathed, shocked.  He just barely got out of the way in time for another soldier to come forward, tieing on the heavy bronze weights and starting to climb, the rest of the soldiers rooting for him.  He barely made it up a few feet before falling back to the ground.  

Danny stepped back, pulling a laughing Tucker after him.  “Come on, we need to go train!”

“But what about the test??”

Danny smiled, shaking his head.  “It’s not going anywhere, besides, I’m pretty sure I would rather like to try that at NIGHT, without becoming a laughing stock.”

Tucker frowned, then sighed, shoulders sagging.  “Yeah, okay, you have a point.”

“HEY, YOU LOT OVER THERE!”

Danny and Tucker quickly raced away to begin doing their sets, just managing to escape Lancer’s wrath as he came storming up to the other soldiers.  “Mess around on your own time!  NOW!  MAAARCH!!”

 

~*~*~*~

 

For the next three weeks, Danny and Tucker were subjected to every exercise under the sun.  Chin-ups, sit-ups, push-ups, punching each other, practicing how to fall and roll, practicing how to fall and roll with practice weapons, then with live weapons.  They trained out on the snow and ice, under the sharp declaration from Lancer that the huns wouldn’t wait for the snow to melt to attack.  They had to learn how to fight in it!  Luckily for Danny, he HAD ridden a horse at least once before; still, saddle sores were a plague on the beginners and intermediates, along with blisters, bruises, sunburn, and muscle aches.  More than one boy disappeared in the night because they couldn’t take the strain.

But Danny never gave up.  He bore with the bruises and the sores, dealt with the sunburns that he just couldn’t avoid due to his fair skin – he ended up getting a very large pot of aloe from Damien for that – and he just kept GOING.  

And through it all, he grew stronger.  His fighting got better, he even began learning more advanced styles of fighting fans under Lancer’s watchful eyes.  He built up muscle, built up endurance, and he learned to ride and ride hard and finally, he could actually FEEL it.  He was becoming a soldier.

But even with all the training and all the tasks he had to go through, he still could not shut away his mind at night.  He still fretted and worried and dreamed of his friends… and of his love.  So for them, he worked harder, trained longer, and vowed to show them his progress, how much he had advanced, improved!

Every night, Tucker and Danny would watch the soldiers attempt to reach the arrow.  No one had succeeded yet, and fewer and fewer were even trying now.  Tucker tried once, and he actually managed to make it up over the halfway mark before he fell.  He almost seriously hurt himself, managing to walk away with just a mild sprain.  He didn’t want to risk actually crippling himself when there was a war going on, so he he didn’t try again.

Danny hadn’t tried at all.

But now, the third week had passed and they were half way through the fourth.  Soon, a month would pass since the soldiers left, and Danny was beginning to have trouble sleeping due to the nightmares.  He gave up sleeping that night, re-dyed his hair and left his tent hours before dawn.  He walked slowly to the training grounds, figuring he would practice on his swordplay, only to stop as he caught sight of the pole and the abandoned weights.  

The young prince hesitated a moment before walking over.

He picked the bronze weights up.  They were pretty heavy, and Danny could see why everyone was having such a hard time.  How could someone be expected to climb up with these things weighing you down?

Still, he tied the weights on and climbed.  He fell.

He tried again.  And again, he fell.

An hour passed, and sweat slid down his brow, his breath coming out in harsh pants.  He slumped against the pole; he hadn’t even made it CLOSE to half way.  “It’s impossible!  How did Vlad do this?!” Danny gasped aloud.

He leaned against the pole for a moment, closing his eyes to rest, when an idea suddenly hit him.  

Maybe… he was going about it all wrong.  

With that thought in mind, Danny looked down at his weights, a determination like fire filling him.

He took off the weights and placed them on the ground, tying the bronze pieces together, before once more picking up the long silk cord – now one, with the weights hanging from the middle.  He wrapped it around the pole, took hold of each end, and just as the sun began to rise over the camp… he climbed.

One foot in front of the other, the balls of his feet aching against the hard wood, Danny felt his body straining as he pulled himself up.  He didn’t dare look down, or even up, he just looked at the wood in front of him.

At first, all he saw were scuff marks – from shoes and fingers – even scratches from nails and teeth.  The signs of hundreds of young men struggling to reach the top, to that unattainable goal of surpassing their superiors, even the gods, to fight for what they believed in!  To prove themselves!

And then, before Danny realised it, the marks began to fade, growing fewer and fewer as all he saw before him now was unmarred, red wood.  And still, he climbed.  At one point, his foot slipped and he a slid a few precious inches before he managed to grab hold of the pole with all his might.  He breathed in and out heavily, waiting a moment to catch his breath, and then kept going.

He didn’t hear or see the soldiers as they began to wake up, didn’t even notice that the sun had risen high above him and that there was a faint sound of hoof beats in the distance.  He heard and saw nothing, except his own breath and the red, hard wood.

That is until, he reached the arrow.

“GO, DAN!!” came a yell from far below.  “GET IT!  GET IT!!”

Dozens of boys joined in the cry.  “DAN!  DAN!  DAN!  DAN!  DAN!  DAN!”

Danny gasped, blue eyes widening as sound suddenly rushed back into his ears.  He was tempted to glance down, to see what was happening below him, but he knew he couldn’t, not if he wanted to make it to the top.  Brows furrowed and teeth bared, Danny climbed PAST the arrow, and dug his fingers into the very top of the pole.  He swung himself up with some difficulty, almost falling for a second time, before he had successfully perched himself at the very top.  He looked up at the bright blue sky, eyes wide with disbelief and elation as he laughed, throwing his hands up in victory.  

He dropped the weights, a soldier barely getting out of the way as they hit the ground hard, leaving a little crater in their wake.  Then, he grabbed the arrow, and with a sharp tug he wrenched it out of the pole, and held it aloft.

“FOR THE HONOR!!”  he cried, tears of joy and pride streaming down his face.  “FOR CHINA!!”

The small army roared with approval under him.

Then, a single voice raised itself.  “Now how’re ya gonna get down?!” Tucker yelled.

“I have no idea!”  Danny cried back, still laughing and grinning from his victory high.  “You guys might wanna get Captain Lancer, cause I REALLY don’t wanna jump!”

He watched as the tiny dots of the boys glanced at each other, then scrambled to go find their captain.  Danny laughed and sighed, just enjoying the wind in his hair and the triumph of what he had accomplished…

Then, the faint sound of a horn met his ears.  It was carried on the wind from the north.

Danny’s back straightened and he turned to look over his shoulder, eyes widening in delight.  There, just over the hill, he could see the fast approach of horses, their soldiers!

They had returned!

“The general is back!  They’re back!!”

Danny bounced in place, almost sliding right out of his spot with a gasp.  “WAH!”

He quickly grew still again, seating himself a bit more carefully as he watched the small army grow closer.  He counted them as they approached, smiling wider as it appeared that most, if not all, had returned.  They had been victorious!

And there in the front, riding into camp, was General Vladimir himself.

The train of soldiers flooded into camp, putting away their horses and shedding their armor and greeting their friends.  Once he had finished with his grand white stallion and changed into a more comfortable set of clothes, the silver-haired dot of the general glanced around.  Captain Lancer bustled up to him; they talked for a moment, then the fat man pointed up at the pole.

Danny heard Vlad’s laughter from all the way at the top.

“Oh, you’re gonna laugh at me, huh~?”

The little prince smirked, pulled back his arm, and with one well placed throw managed to send the arrow flying until it hit the dirt right at the general’s feet.

He grinned as the man just laughed harder.  He placed his hands around his mouth and hollered down to him.  “LAUGH IT UP, GENERAL, BUT I’M STILL STUCK UP HERE AND I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO GET DOWN NOW!”

Vladimir said something up at him.

“WHAT?!”

The general cupped his hands around his mouth and bellowed clearly.  “SLIDE DOWN!” he told Danny.  “THAT’S WHAT I DID!”

“Oh hell no, I’ll fall and break my neck…”  Danny muttered, shaking his head.  But the longer he thought about it, the more he realised that it WAS his only option.  He bit his lip, thinking about it for a moment, then nodded with a sigh.  He reached down and untied the sash from around around his waist, wrapping the ends securely around his hands.

“IF I FALL, ONE OF YOU BETTER CATCH ME OR I’LL HAUNT YOUR ASSES!!”

As they laughed, Danny sucked in a breath, and then slipped off the top, catching the edge with his hands as he quickly turned himself around so he could hug the pole with his knees.  He wrapped the sash around the pole, got a good grip on it, and then slowly began to slide down the pole, using the sash to keep himself from slipping and falling to his death.

And worked!  Until about three fourths of the way down and his sash ripped.

“Oh SH–!!”

Vlad’s heart skipped a beat as he saw Danny start to fall from almost twenty feet up.  He leapt forward –!

The prince fell neatly into his arms, the air whooshing from his lungs.  “Ah!” the general gasped, grabbing him close.  “Good gods, Dan!  I’m back for one second and you nearly kill yourself!”

Danny swayed a bit as the general put him back on his feet, but didn’t actually let him go.  The boy laughed, looking a little dazed as he looked back up at the pole.  “D-did you SEE that!  I made it all the way up there, hahah!  Oh gods…”

He bent over a little bit, growing pale.  “Oh boy, now I’m not feeling so good… Falling sucks, I don’t recommend it, ugh…”

Even though he looked a little shaken up, he still turned and smiled happily at the general, at all the soldiers that had returned.  “You’re back!  How did it go?  You guys were gone for so long!”

The man smiled.  “Go ask your friends, they’re both in the medical tent and they will definitely be glad to see you!”

Vladimir patted Danny’s shoulders – then he leaned in close to his ear.  “Meet me in my tent tonight…” he told the prince, lowering his voice to a tantalizing whisper.  “I want to kiss every inch of your body…”

Danny cheeks turned flaming pink as he stumbled away from the general.  “Y-y-yes, sir!”

He ducked his head down shyly, the poor boy already ruffled from just a few words, and quickly trotted away towards the medical tent.  He was stopped more than once on the way there, receiving some congratulatory words and pats on the back for his achievement with the pole.  By the time he made it to the tent, he was grinning like a loon.  

Until he saw his friends laying on some of the medical beds, being treated by Doctor Grey.  His eyes widened and he paled a little, rushing in.  “Oh my god, Kwan, Dash!”

Dash gave Danny a little salute, one blue eye glittering with glee and the other hidden behind a heavy gauze pad.  “Heyyyy, kiddo!  How ya– ow.”

The blonde hissed, lowering his arm with a wince.  

Damien gave him a look and came back over to him.  “What did I say?  What did I say?” he repeated, glancing back at Kwan.

The Chinese man snorted.  “Don’t raise your arm.”

“And what is the FIRST thing this boy does?” the doctor muttered, sitting down.  “Really!”

The prince quickly made his way over to them, looking them over in concern.  “Are you two okay?  What happened?”

“I am just fine,” Kwan told him good-naturedly.  “It’s Dash that got the short end of the stick.  He was being a brave idiot, trying to protect everyone on the field INCLUDING the GENERAL.”

Dash pointed at his friend.  “Hey, I saved YOUR ass way more than once.”

“Yeah, well, that’s true.”

The blonde grinned smugly up at the tent wall as Damien took another look at a long, padded bandage that covered his chest.  Kwan smiled and patted Danny’s hand.  “It’s all right, I only have a few ugly bruises.  Dash will need a week of rest before he’s up training again.  Some hun got him good across the chest there, and another one nicked his eye when he was deflecting an arrow off Vladimir.”

Dash struck a pose.  “I was like a NINJA!  Oooooooowowwwww~!  I– ouch.”

Damien slapped at his raised hands.  “I will STRAP you down!”

Kwan shook his head and glanced at Danny again.  “We won the fight pretty quickly, but they all retreated and spread out through the eastern woods.  They’re devils with climbing trees and trying to pick us off with bows and arrows, so we’ve been trying to pick THEM off one by one for the past month.  It was more frustrating than perilous, most of the time.”

Danny sighed in relief.  “I’m just glad you all made it back okay, especially you two.”

He gave Kwan a gentle side hug, before moving closer to Dash’s bed.  While the doctor was distracted with something Kwan needed, Danny leaned forward and gently embraced Dash around the neck.  

“Thank you…”  Danny whispered, before pulling back with a soft smile.  “Now, you better hurry up and get better!”  he said at a louder tone, grinning.  “I’ve got a month’s worth of new moves to show you and I’m sure Tucker will want to reenact how I climbed the trial pole and got the arrow~”

Dash’s jaw dropped.  “Dude, you did WHAT?!” he grinned, sitting up.

“That’s it,” Damien snapped, getting up.  “I’m getting the straps.”

 

~*~

 

The day passed pretty quickly, and before Danny knew it training was over for the day, everyone had enjoyed a loud, rambunctious dinner… and the sun had set.

Danny stood nervously inside his own tent, unsure of what to do.  He had gone down to the river early and bathed himself completely along with washing out the dye for the night.  He had it all tied up in the dark cloth and no one was the wiser.  He was dressed in his softer resting clothes and he just… paced.  Vladimir had asked him to come by his tent for clearly personal… INTIMATE reasons and Danny was starting to get all flustered and nervous again.  He was so terribly inexperienced, a completely untouched virgin, and he didn’t know what to do!  He wanted to go, of course.

Oh, he really did…

Finally, after debating with himself for another few minutes, Danny walked out into the cold night, the fires dying down and the other soldiers heading off to bed.  He waited till the coast was completely clear, before approaching the general’s large tent.  His cheeks were already flushed and his hands trembled slightly as he gently pulled back the flap, and stepped inside.

“V-Vlad?”

The big tent was dark tonight, the fire burned down to deep cherry coals, and starlight filtering through the open gaps in the canvas.  On the far side – where Danny knew his bed was – a figure in shadow stood… gazing softly at the boy.  

“I’m here…” Vlad whispered.

Two strong hands reached out – beckoning.  

The boy froze for a moment, quivering, before he slowly approached.  A shaky little sigh spilled past his lips as he was soon in reach, one of his small, pale hands coming up to rest inside one of Vlad’s larger ones.  He looked up at the general then, his wide eyes meeting the older man’s darker ones…

And with a soft sound, stepped into his arms.

Vlad felt all the tension drain from his body as he embraced Danny.  He sighed deeply and combed his fingers through the boy’s hair; the dark towel fell from his head, and the soft, slightly damp locks fell free down his prince’s back, shining bright in the starlight.  “Every night I was out there… I thought of you…” he whispered into Danny’s neck.    

A slight shiver slid down the prince’s spine, followed by a tiny gasp.  “E-Every night?”

“Every night…” Vlad murmured.  He kissed his soft skin.  “It was dark, and with the taste of you on my lips, I couldn’t help but dream…”

He trailed off, in favor of gently caressing Danny’s slender neck.  He kissed his mouth softly, and slowly.  “V-Vlad…”  the prince breathed, reaching up to wrap his arms around the man’s broad shoulders.  “I dreamed of you t-too… every night…”

He rose up on his toes and kissed back eagerly, his little tongue slipping out to graze Vlad’s bottom lip, chasing the taste with inexperienced desire.  His smaller body trembled in the man’s arms, pressing so close…

Vlad pulled the boy’s pelvis flush with his own, their kisses going from chaste and slow… to heated and fast…!

Suddenly, the general groaned and cupped Danny’s face, pulling away a few inches.  “My prince…” he murmured, gazing deep into the beautiful boy’s eyes.  “Before I go any farther, you have to tell me that you understand what I want to do now, and that you want it.  If you don’t want to right now, that is fine!  We can wait until we’re married!  But I just have to know…!”

Danny whimpered, mind swirling with want and desire.  But he forced himself to think rationally, as both the general’s lover and a soldier… and about what he himself knew he was ready for.

“I… I w-want you Vlad, I do!  But I’m…  I’m still a v-virgin and I… I don’t think I’m r-ready for… for…”

He flushed and ducked his head, biting his lip.  “I… I think we should wait… for… for THAT.  For when we are back home and s-safe and maybe… maybe after we are m-married.  But… I want you to touch me… I’ve… d-dreamed, about what it would be like, to have your hands on me… you… exploring me, touching me where no one has… where even I haven’t…  I… I…”

His face was bright red now and he moved to hide his face in Vlad’s chest.  “Oh, dammit!  Why is this so hard?!”

Vlad chuckled and kissed the top of Danny’s head.  Somewhere in the back of his mind, he honestly felt relieved; the boy he had known and protected his whole life was now his lover… and there was something beautifully intimate in that… but he did feel better, now that he knew Prince Danwei would be married and safe in his arms, after this war, and when Pariah Dark was just a shadow of an old nightmare.  They would be together, and they would be able to love one another as they saw fit…

“Tell me your dreams…” Vladimir whispered quietly.  His hands slid gently down Danny’s body, tugging at his clothes.  “Tell me what you wish me to do… what will make you feel pleasure…”

Danny moaned softly, breath coming out a little faster as he felt his shirt being tugged and pulled away from his body, unable to stop himself from arching into Vlad’s touch.  “I… Oh, I don’t know, I–Mnn!”

The prince keened as that big, warm hand slid across his bare skin, making him shudder.  His lids drooped and his mouth remained open slightly as he panted.  “I… I dream about you, t-touching me… teaching me, about what feels good… hah!  Of y-you, touching my… in my… I … Oh!…”

Vlad smirked, fingers trailing down inside the loose fabric of Danny’s pants.  “You’re much more adventurous than I thought you would be,” he murmured softly, kissing the boy under the jaw.  He picked the slender boy up, placed him gently down onto his cushioned bedroll, and knelt between his legs… kissing his way down Danny’s neck and chest, unlacing the ties as he went.

The little prince whimpered and moaned with every touch, head tilted back and body laying back against the bedroll, unknowingly spreading himself out for Vlad’s touch and gaze.  He looked up at the man under heavy lids, his bright blue eyes growing dark with lust.  He reached up for the man, clinging to his shoulders when he felt his pants loosen, and slide an inch down his hips.

He gasped, blush spreading down his neck to his chest.  “V-Vlad?”

A growl of satisfaction rumbled from the larger man’s chest as he slid Danny’s pants completely off of him, leaving them down by his knees and sitting back.  Heated cobalt eyes glimmered down at the prince through dark lashes, silver hair spilling down his shoulders, Vlad’s muscled chest almost glowing in the moonlight and the dying embers of his fire.

Those dark eyes only had Danny panting even heavier, milky pale chest rising and falling with each breath.  Even after countless sunburns, the poor boy just was incapable of getting a tan, leaving his skin as white and silky as it had been back when he was at the palace.  But here, inside this tent under Vlad’s larger form, a healthy pink flush dusted over his body.  Slim muscles moved under soft skin as he squirmed on the bedroll, clear signs of his training and hard work.  But even still, he retained his boyish figure with a slim waist and slightly rounded hips.

The general cocked his head, taking in Danny’s body.  The prince panted, slender chest struggling not to heave as his lidded blue eyes wandered hungrily over the much larger man…

“It’s a wonder half the army wasn’t following you around like lovesick dogs…” Vlad breathed.  He gave Danny a little smile.  “I suppose I have those two strapping lads to thank for scaring everyone off those first few days~”

Danny’s eyes widened incredulously.  “They what?!  Why would th-they–!”

Vlad grinned, his teeth gleaming predatorily in the light as he leaned down, kissing Danny’s neck hard.  “I love it when you blush…” he whispered. He took the prince’s small cock into his hand, stroking gently.

“A-Ahh!” Danny squealed, head tilting back and hips bucking under Vlad’s hands.

“I will give you a new dream…” Vlad whispered into Danny’s chest as he stroked him.  “Except I will still be here… when you wake up…”

He kissed the boy’s chest.  “I will always be here for you… my prince… ”

Danny gasped, hands fisting in the man’s long silver hair.  “Ahh ah ah AHH–!”

His cries were swallowed by his lover…


	9. Chapter Nine

The next sunrise dawned cold and red over the distant mountains, casting shadows over a glittering new snowpack.  It was unmarred for a distance, like bloody diamonds covering the ground…

Pariah Dark lopped off the crown of a tree and crouched there, surveying the forest like a massive bird of prey, silhouetted in black against the dawn.  

His falcon screeched – catching his attention – turned on a draft, and dropped a tattered, embroidered handkerchief into his hands.  The leader of the huns smelled the cloth.  

After a pause, he dropped from the tree, landing like a cat in the snow below. Three huge men were waiting for him; after the Fright Knight had been killed in battle against that blasted General Vladimir, Pariah knew they would be fighting to earn a position as his new second-in-command.  He tossed the cloth at one of them.  

The hun caught it, running his fingers over the clumsy, but loving embroidery.  “Traditional, a newlywed peasant.”

The second one snatched it from him and smelled it.  “Pine smoke, and mud from valley rice patties.”

The third one plucked a short white hair from beneath a fold.  “Horse hair, from imperial stallions.”

Pariah smirked and nodded, accepting the handkerchief back.  “This came from a small village in the Shin Shu pass, where Chinese soldiers are stationed to defend it from our onslaught.”

“That’s fine, we can go around and avoid detection –”

Faster than the eye could follow, Pariah’s jagged blade had left its sheath and neatly sliced the man’s head off.  His skull hit the snow and slid down the gentle incline, leaving a sluggish trail of hot blood.  The other huns stiffened, not daring to speak as their leader wiped his sword and re-sheathed it.  

“Interesting proposition,” Pariah sneered.  “But no.  The fastest way to the palace is through that pass.”

“Lord Pariah, sir,” the smaller one piped up, almost able to mask his fear.  “Is… this still about that prince?”

Their leader grinned, his single eye shining maniacally.  “Why, yes.  Yes, it is.”

“You believe he went back to the palace…?”

“I KNOW he went back to the palace, that trickster runt… Finding shelter with his precious coward of a grandfather…!” Pariah hissed, teeth gleaming in the bloody light of dawn.  “I will find him… and I will BREAK HIM.  And besides–”

He glanced down his nose at the cloth in his hand.  “This young lady will be missing her handkerchief.”

Pariah grinned, crushing it in his fist.  “We should RETURN IT TO HER~”

 

~*~*~

 

Danny’s eyes blinked open drowsily, just as the sun began to rise over the camp.  He purred, burying himself further into Vlad’s chest as he felt the man’s large fingers comb through his hair.  He blushed lightly as what happened last night filtered back into his mind, blushing even FURTHER as he realised they were both still very much undressed.  

He glanced up, smiling shyly when he saw that Vlad was already up, watching him with lidded, warm eyes.  “How long have you been awake?”

“A while,” the older man murmured.  He smiled softly down at the boy and kissed his long, white hair.  “I usually get up before dawn to do my morning stretches.  This is sleeping late for me.”

The boy giggled.  “Sorry I’ve distracted you from your duties, sir~”

Danny slowly sat up, wrapping the sheet around his lower half demurely as he stretched, hunting for his clothes.  “I need to get ready, unfortunately.  I’m suppose to start more advanced training with my fans today.  But um…”

He glanced back shyly at Vlad.  “Before I go, maybe you could help me dye my hair and we can eat together?  I mean, if you want to… and… I’d like to come back tonight… if I could…”

Vladimir grinned.  “That sounds amazing, D–”

Suddenly, he blinked at the entrance flap.  “I am very sorry for what I am about to do, Dan.”

“Wha– AH?!”

All at once, Danny found himself on his belly, pressed flat into Vlad’s bedroll and quickly covered up.  The general got to his feet, yanking his pants on, and barely managed to be standing when Captain Lancer came in.  “Good morning, sir!  Everything ship-shape?”

Vlad nodded neutrally to hide his drumming heart.  “Indeed.  Anything to report?”

Danny’s ears pricked up as he heard a scroll unroll.  “Unfortunately, yes.  The main body of the Hun Army will be moving through the Shin Shu pass in two weeks’ time, given their current pace,” Lancer told the general gravely.  “Intelligence reports say that they’re moving for the palace again…”

A hand quickly covered the prince’s mouth to keep the shocked sound from passing his lips.  His eyes were wide as he looked out at the dark silhouettes that were the captain and the general.  The palace… they were going for the palace AGAIN??  But Pariah had lost over half of his army by now!  Surely he doesn’t think he could actually take over China still??

Or… does he really not care for that?  Does he just want to cause chaos and destruction?

Danny’s eyes narrowed.  No, he couldn’t let this happen.  He had been training for this, was still training for this!  He would fight!  He would follow his general this time, follow him into battle!  The huns would NOT reach the other side of the Shin Shu pass!

Vlad ran his hands through his hair, cogs turning in his brain.  “…Alright, send a message to the fifth and first divisions.  They’re the strongest and the closest,” he told Lancer.  “Tell them they have one week to prepare for hard riding.”

The captain stared at him.  “Sir?  One week’s allowance?  But, even with a company that small it would take four days straight to reach the pass!  You would give the men no time to rest before battle!”

“We’ll bring sleeping wagons and switch shifts,” Vlad informed him sternly.  “The troops here just returned from battle, they need at least a week to rest and mend before we leave.”

“The huns would still outnumber us ten to one!  This is the main mass of the army!  Pariah Dark will be leading them!!”

“The huns are human, too.  They’ve been riding and fighting the whole winter long, and the elements cannot be gentle on them.  Their massive party will move slowly.  This is unfamiliar territory.  They will be tired, not expecting opposition as early as Shin Shu.”

Vladimir gave Lancer a cold look.  “Now will you continue to question me or will you follow my orders, captain?”

The fat man hurried to salute.  “Yes, sir!  I mean, I will follow your orders, sir!”

“Then send the message.”

“Yes, sir!”

Once Lancer had bustled out of his tent, Vlad sighed wearily and rubbed his face.  A march, so soon after the last, against Pariah Dark himself… he could at least compliment his enemy on their tenacity, forcing him to make these decisions that would mean the lives of so many…

“Vlad…”  Danny whispered, slowly sitting up in the bed.  He wrapped the sheet tight around his nude form, white hair brushing his shoulders as he approached the general.  “What can I do?  I know I’m just another soldier, I know that all you can ask of me is to train and train hard and prepare to move at the end of the week, but… I’m also your… lover, and in my heart I’m already your betrothed.  So, please…”

He place a gentle hand on the man’s arm, looking up at him with worried blue eyes.  “Is there anything I can do?”

Vlad glanced at Danny, the crease between his brows dark and heavy with the lives of his soldiers.  “I… I don’t know, my prince,” he admitted.  “I have just decided to bottleneck the entire hun army in a small mountain pass.  There might be reinforcements coming, but we all know that this battle is the turning point.  Whoever wins this battle–”

“Will be US!” Danny said confidently, pressing against Vlad’s chest.  “Vlad, I know I haven’t told you much about what happened, about how I got here… so I’ll tell you now.  I met Pariah, and I have more faith than ever, that you, that we, WILL defeat him.”  

Vlad sighed and cradled Danny’s face, pressing their foreheads together.  “I know… and the very thought still terrifies me…”

Danny shook his head, trying his best to put the general at ease.  “They took me that day, because they thought I was a woman.  I think… I think they thought I was your wife.  They didn’t know I was the prince until I woke up in their camps and… that’s when they gave me to Pariah.  I… told you, what he intended to do to me…  I don’t need to explain…”

He shook his head, a confident smirk spreading across his lips.  “But you see, I learned something that night!  All anyone talked about was the huns’ cruelty and skill at fighting, and so people feared them.  Pariah was just as the stories described him, large and powerful and cruel… but he was also a FOOL.”

Vlad snarled and kissed Danny hard.  The boy gasped in shock, lips parting under Vlad’s forceful ones and his fingers digging into his shoulders; the general pulled away, running his fingers aggressively down the prince’s naked body.  “He was a fool to underestimate you…” he growled, clutching him close.  “And he was a fool to underestimate me.  He shall NOT make the same mistake again!”

“But he already HAS…”  Danny panted, eyes lidded and dazed from one single kiss.  “The Shin Shu pass, it’s a TRAP.  He will be expecting the attack from the east side, from the palace army, but he WON’T be expecting us to trap them in from the rear!”

He smiled up at Vlad, grinning almost wickedly.  “That man is too cocky, too prideful.  He thinks the men he sent has killed most of us, he will not be expecting all of us to still live, to be coming after HIM!”

His smile fell and he gasped, cheeks staining pink as those large hands grasped at him even harder, holding him close and touching him firmly, possessively.  He swallowed thickly, willing himself not to get aroused again, knowing they had far too much to do today for that.  Oh, but it was so tempting…

“A-and, the mountains… they are covered in snow and w-we… we have the means to make an a-ambush and… and…”

“And they have advantages, too,” Vlad murmured, rubbing slow circles into the boy’s hips.  “Huns are like animals when they are cornered.  We must remember that in strategy.”

“O-of course…”  Danny agreed, leaning into his touch.  “And the Shin Shu paths, along the cliffs.  If we send a-archers up there, we might have more of an advantage, high g-ground.”

“Good, Danwei~” Vladimir cooed.  He placed a gentle kiss on Danny’s collarbone.  “You would be a fine commander yet.”

Danny laughed breathlessly, looking up at Vlad with nothing but adoration.  “I learned from the best, my general~”

The big man chuckled, stroked Danny’s cheek, and finally let him go.  “You should go dye your hair and go back to your tent, else those boys start talking,” he told him.  “Also, go to the distribution tent on the way there.  Tell them I sent you.”

Danny smiled softly, nodding.  He really did need to go, not only to dye his hair but also to eat and start training before he was late.  He pulled on his clothes and tied up his hair in the dark scarf, turning to say goodbye to Vlad, but then frowned in confusion. “Wait, the distribution tent?  What for?”

Vlad grinned proudly down at him.  “To fit you for your armor, of course.”

Danny’s eyes widened as his face split with a wide, happy grin.  “Seriously?!  Oh, thank you!”

Danny darted forward and hugged Vlad around the middle, nearly shaking with excitement and pride.  “You won’t regret this!” he told him, eyes bright.  “You’ve taught and trained me well.  I’ll make you proud, you’ll see.”

The general kissed Danny’s forehead.  “My lad, you already have~” he purred.  “Now go.”

“Yes, sir!”

Danny gave Vlad one last kiss on the cheek, then darted out of the tent and towards his own.  He managed to slip inside just when the other soldiers had seriously begun to wake up and prepare for the day.  He quickly dyed his hair, changed his clothes, and after strapping his fans to his back he rushed back out into camp and towards the distribution tent.  

It was pretty busy in there already, other soldiers being fitted and armor being repaired, it was a little intimidating.  Finally, he spotted one of the blacksmiths that seemed the least busy at the moment, simply polishing up some swords.  Danny admired the craftsmanship of the blades, before focusing on the strong, dark skinned figure working on them.

“Um, excuse me?”

His eyes widened when he was suddenly met with a stern expression, coming from a woman with sharp, but recognizable features.  Her hair was shaved and cropped short and her arms were bare, rippling with dark muscles.  The sleeves of her robes were rolled high onto her shoulders, and Danny spotted a few burns and scars on her skin.

She cocked her head at him, cool green eyes running over him.  “This is a private area,” she told Danny.  “Unless you got some kind of orders–”

“I do!  I mean…”  Danny flushed, fumbling a bit.  “Sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt you if you’re busy, but General Masters sent me to get fitted for my first set of armor…”

He frowned a little, wondering if she needed more information than that and also wondering exactly what he could possibly wear.  The armor most of the soldiers wore were strong, but also constricting.  He needed more movement than that, with his choice of weapon.

“I’m… not quite sure what armor set I need?  I use metal fighting fans and short swords so…”

“Ohhhhhh, you’re the scrawny type.”

The woman put down her hammer and beckoned him behind the racks of armor.  “Okay, c’mere, kiddo.  I have something for you back here.”

Danny followed her curiously, past rows of heavy metal plating and long spears, to the back of the tent where the armory woman was pulling out a folded stack of bleached bamboo armor.  “You can call me Valerie for now,” she told him.  She roughly pulled his arms up over his head, took his measurements, and then started to strap on the bamboo plates.  “Now, these will stop a regular old bow and arrow, and probably deflect a knife, but if one of those big huns has a sword, you run away.  Let me know what your movement is like.”

Danny moved his arms, testing his mobility.  “Oh, they’re really light!  And yeah, they don’t hinder my movement at all.  Which I guess is a good thing, since I’m gonna have to rely on my speed out there…”

He looked back up at Valerie curiously.  “Did you make all of this?  They’re very good!  You’re better than some of the blacksmiths I’ve seen in the pa–the city.  Have you been doing this long?”

“My whole life.  I’ll be coming on the road with you guys, too,” she told him.  “No one repairs armor like me, and no one repairs soldiers like my dad, so gods know you’ll need us both!”

Danny blinked, then grinned.  “You’re Damien’s daughter?  Oh wow, no wonder you’re amazing then, it must run in the family!”

He flushed pink at the look she gave him, ducking his head.  “I mean, I’ve never met a woman like you before, you know?  In the army and all, I… Oh, I’m going to shut up now before I embarrass myself further, I’m so sorry…”

“Relax, kiddo, I don’t do boys anyway,” Valerie snorted, finishing the straps.  “How’s that?  Feel good?”

“Huh?”  Danny blinked, stumped before catching on to what she meant.  “Oh yeah, it’s comfortable.  Did you wear the leather a bit on these?  They don’t rub at all…”

Valerie raised an eyebrow at him.  “First battle?”

“… Yeah.”  Danny breathed, nodding slightly.  “It… hasn’t been announced yet, I don’t think, but… yeah… first battle.”

The girl frowned.  “So… you’ve never seen war.”

Danny was silent for a moment.  “Yes… and no.  I’ve seen war and I’ve seen battles, attacks, but I wasn’t a soldier then.  I wasn’t… in the fight.  So this… this is very different.”

Valerie sighed and began to untie the boy’s straps.  “Look, I’m not gonna sugar coat it for you,” she told him, taking off his armor and wrapping it up in a bundle of paper.  “War is ugly, and it’s bloody, and you are going to see things.”

She yanked the string sharply, closing the bundle.  “There are some things that you really can’t unsee.”

The woman gave him a look as she walked back over to him and dropped the bundle into his arms.  “Do yourself a favor, kid,” she told him.  “Don’t let yourself linger on the people you weren’t able to save.  It sounds cruel.  But it’s how you stay sane.”

Danny… really didn’t have anything to say to that.  He knew it was the truth, that she wasn’t trying to hurt him, but the thought was still painful.  But she was right, this was war, and while he may have made his first real friends here, found his lover here, there was no guarantee that he wouldn’t lose one or all of them in the next battle…

He just had to stop thinking about it, had to focus on what mattered in that moment.  Living.

“Thank you… Lady Grey…”

Valerie gave him a little half-smile.  “Sure, your majesty.”

Danny froze, blinking wide panicked eyes at her, before forcing himself to laugh it off.  “Haha… right…”

He shifted uncomfortably, preparing to leave, when a sudden idea hit him.  “Hey… the um, the robes you gave to wear under this… is there a chance you have any in white?”

Valerie raised her brows at him.  “Yes, why?”

Danny grinned.  “I’m planning to dye my fans white, and the bamboo is already bleached.  If I wear white robes, and white cloth over my head… I will blend in pretty well with the snow.”

His eyes lit up wickedly.  “I’m fast, and the fans are silent… They won’t even see me.”

Valerie nodded, catching on quickly quickly.  “Special armor for a special soldier~” she said, grinning excitedly at the prospect.  She pulled pale white fabrics off the rack and held them against Danny’s body.  “When I’m done, even the snowflakes will call you brother.”

Danny smiled widely, eyes glittering.  “Except this little snowflake is going hun hunting~”

 

~*~

 

The young prince of China left the blacksmith with a set of pure white armor, which he stowed under his bedroll.  General Vladimir made the announcement of the impending battle not long after, and was met with the roar of his troops, even those who had been injured.  Dash actually stayed still for a whole six days before they finally let him go back to his training; for some reason, the announcement that they were going through the Shin Shu pass had filled him with an anxious vigor, but he wouldn’t tell anyone why.  Danny wondered, but he – Tucker and Kwan, too – knew they had no time to press him on it.  The turning of the tide was approaching, and it would depend on the soldiers of China!

One week passed in furious training, quick meals, and deep sleep.  Danny made leaps and bounds in his fan techniques.  The prince was now sure he could do damage in a real fight; accompanied with Valerie’s special camouflage, he fidgeted with anticipation and anxiety for the battle ahead.

The general was even busier with his own preparations.  Two hundred men would be under his command during this crucial fight, and even if nothing held them up, it would take four days and three nights of hard riding to get to the pass in time to intercept the huns.  Danny could see it weighing on his shoulders, in his eyes…

However, every night, their hands and lips on each other would calm that panic.  If only for a few short hours…

Finally, the seventh day arrived.

Danny blinked awake – he had slept fitfully – to find Vlad already up and dressed.  His wide blue eyes took in the magnificent form of the general, bedecked in full war armor and a gold-lined helm, with a single quail feather fixed to the top.  The prince had seen him in that armor before, at the palace, and on his way to war meetings…

But now… it seemed different.

Vlad went still – feeling Danny’s eyes on him – and turned, smiling affectionately down at his lover.  The general knelt, taking the prince’s hand in both of his gloved ones, and kissed his knuckles; warm cobalt eyes gazed up into Danny’s, filled with devotion.  “Good morning…” he whispered.  “Today is the day.”

Danny nodded, eyes only in his lover, but his heart weighed heavy for a moment in his chest.  He slowly stood, sheet sliding from his body as he touched the shining breast plate, gleaming in the warm candle light.  The sun had yet to rise, so Danny and Vlad had a couple short hours, just to themselves.

“Will… will you help me get ready?”  Danny asked softly, turning away to pick up his pack and supplies.  Danny had known they would have very little time, so he had actually taken down his tent and packed up everything in the middle of the night, no longer caring if anyone saw him leave the general’s tent in the morning.  From his bag he pulled out his snow white armor, knowing they would have no time to stop and change before they were upon the huns.

“Lady Grey made these special for me…” Danny said, laying out the pure white robes and shoes, bleached white bamboo armor and protective white sash for his head.  Even the bladed fans, Vlad now saw, were dyed a similar white.  “I came up with a plan, you see.  I’m fast and silent and with these on, in the snow, the huns won’t even see me.”

He smirked slightly.  “I’ll be a phantom…  And, this way, we won’t have to worry about the fact I can’t keep my hair dyed for this battle.  I will simply have it hidden away, under this…”

He looked up at Vlad then, eyes wide and seeking approval.  “Well?”

The general examined the pieces of armor, and the white shirt and sashes.  For a long moment, he did not say anything, but when he did, it was with a smile.  “A fine idea,” he told his prince.  “And fine work on her part.  These are excellent, truly.”

Danny smiled back, sagging slightly with a sigh of relief.  “I’m glad you like them.  I figured, for once in my life, I could use my discoloration for something USEFUL!  It’s time I make something of my title, out there on the battlefield!  Not the phantom prince, but the phantom soldier!”

He blushed a little, embarrassed by his enthusiasm, but easily returned the general’s smile.  “Would… you help me put them on?  Please?”

“Of course.”

Danny turned, pulling his hair out of the way as his lover slipped on the light, pale garments, firmly tying the sashes of his armor, making sure it settled over all the proper places.  The armor plating was strapped on securely and before long, Danny felt the comfortable weight of all his armor in place.  He stepped into his white boots, startling a little when Vlad knelt before him to lace them up.  He smiled softly, chuckling.

Finally, Danny was dressed and ready for battle.  

He brushed back his white hair, holding up the thick protective headdress and ties with a blush.  “I… can’t quite reach.  I want to make sure it’s tied down securely…”

Vlad laughed and shook his head, accepting the headdress.  “Now, who will you trust to do this before the battle?” he asked, still good-natured, but serious.  “I most likely will not be able to use the excuse to the commanders that I was late because I was lacing up a soldier’s helmet.”

“Well, hopefully I won’t have to take it off at all but… if I need too, I can ask Dash,” Danny murmured, tilting his head back as Vlad began to braid and tie up his hair.  “He’s already seen it, knows I’m keeping it a secret, he won’t think twice about helping me.”

He smiled softly, happily.  “He’s a good man.  I’m glad I can call him my friend.”

Vlad nodded approvingly as he finished the ties.  “Good.  After all this, all those young men will be the friends of the Phantom Emperor…” he murmured, turning Danny around.  “Let me have a look at you.”

Danny turned and stepped back, letting Vlad see him in the full set of armor for the first time.  The robes and sashes were a pristine, snow white, even down to the soft grey leather straps.  The bleached bamboo had been polished and rubbed down, gleaming like ice against the white cloth.  The headdress fell around his face, and would make good protection against the sun, as well as shielded his hair and part of his face from view.  All that could be truly seen, past the white garments and his own lily white skin, was the bright starry blue of his eyes.

He turned in a small circle, looking down at himself curiously.  “How does it look?  Will it work?”

No answer.

Danny looked up at the general, getting a little flustered.  “Vlad?”

Vlad blinked, chest swelling in a sharp intake of breath as he was startled out of his thoughts.  “What–?”

The prince didn’t miss the flash of fear that showed in his eyes.  He frowned in concern and came closer, laying a hand on Vlad’s breast plate.  “Vlad… I’m going to be alright.  You trained me for this, I’m ready.”

He smiled softly up at him.  “You don’t need to worry, this time… this time, we’re riding out together.”

Vlad took Danny’s hands, holding them to his face and sighing softly.  “I know… I just… I wish there was a way to ensure that you won’t –”

He kissed his prince’s palms, cutting himself off… not wanting to bring back that image he had just had.  Danwei was a truly beautiful boy, he always had been, and like this, all in white, he was absolutely dazzling but… Vlad had seen a blossom of red bloom over that pale cloth… spreading unhindered across that beautiful expanse of pure white… Danny, lying absolutely still in the snow, his bright blue eyes never to open again…

Vlad held Danny close, his arms clinging so tight he feared he might bruise him, but he couldn’t stop.  “I love you, my phantom prince…” he whispered.  “I want to keep loving you for a long time…”

Danny startled for a moment, then relaxed in Vlad’s hold, returning it just as tightly.  His eyes slid closed as he pressed his face into the general’s neck, breathing him in and committing to memory the heat and scent of his skin.

“I love you as well, my general… so, so much.”  he breathed.  “And we WILL keep loving each other, long after this battle.  I know it…”

“We may not speak for a few days.  But know that I keep you in my heart.”

Danny smiled, snuggling closer.  “And you have always had a place in mine…”


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mild, off-scene character death

They stayed like that for a long time, simply holding each other and taking solace in the other.  When the sun came up over the horizon, Captain Lancer found them like that; not making any excuses, Vladimir kissed Danny one last time, bid him a temporary farewell, and led Lancer out of his tent.  Danny flushed a bit, keeping his head down as he waited for Vlad and Lancer to walk out of sight.  That was the first time they had been seen together, and by the CAPTAIN no less.  

Danny shook his head and grabbed his supplies.  He couldn’t think about that now, he needed to go eat and prepare his horse.  They would be riding out in less then hour, so he needed to hurry.

Luckily, Danny actually found a plate of food left out for him in Vlad’s tent, which he wolfed down quickly before heading out to the pastures.  An attendant led him to his assigned horse, and Danny couldn’t help but smile when he was brought to the grey dappled stallion he had been bonding with over the past few weeks.  

“Hey, boy… you ready to see some action?”

Once his horse was saddled up and all his supplies were strapped down, he led his horse out to the hills, joining the other soldiers as they waited for their general.  Danny felt himself shifting uncomfortably, nerves filling his belly.  This was really it.  

They were going to war.

“Heyyyy, butt towel!  Aren’t you lookin’ schmancy!”

Danny turned, grinning as he saw Dash, Kwan and Tucker approach with their own horses.  He laughed, clasping the soldier’s hand.  “Hey, hundan, glad to see they finally let you out of the infirmary~”

Dash laughed.  “Yeah, to be honest I still have to be a little careful raising my arms and any hits to my chest are gonna hurt like a sonuvabitch, but I’m ready to kick more HUNNY BUN!  Speaking of which, Tuck, aren’t you still a beginner?  What’re you doing here?”

Tucker puffed out his chest proudly.  “I’m a Fong Wen man!  I persuaded Lancer to let me come along to lend a hand with the horses!”

Danny clapped a hand on his shoulder, grinning.  “That’s awesome!  We’re gonna need all the help we can get out there.”

He sobered up, looking out at all the other soldiers.  “This is it… this could be the battle that wins the war…”

Kwan clapped a hand on Danny’s shoulder.  “We’ll win,” he said, not a trace of doubt in his body, eyes, or voice.  “We must win.  For our families, and for China.”

Danny nodded.  “For China.”

Just then, a horn blew on the hill, and they all turned to see their general atop his own steed, looking down below at his troops.  The soldiers quickly stood at attention, some climbing up onto their own steeds to get into formation, like Danny was doing.  All eyes were on Vlad, and the fields went silent.

The silver-haired man gazed over his troops for a long moment…

Then, he inhaled, and spoke.  

“Boys came to my camp!” General Vladimir said, voice ringing out over the ranks of his young soldiers.  “Today, I see men!  Men ready to fight!”

He unsheathed his sword, raising it high in the air.  “As we ride for this battle – a battle that will be remembered for centuries as the one that turned the tide – know this!  You do not fight for ME!  You fight for YOURSELVES!  You will fight for honor, for glory, for your loved ones!  For your country!”

The sunrise began to color the horizon.  

“AND KNOW AS THE SUN RISES ON THIS MORNING, YOU ARE MEN!  MEN THAT WILL FIGHT AND DIE FOR WHAT IS GOOD IN THIS WORLD!!”

Vladimir’s stallion reared against the sunrise.  The general’s eyes blazed in the sunlight, sword flashing like a weapon of the gods.  “TO DEATH!!” Vlad roared.  “TO VICTORY!!”

The soldier’s roared and cheered, shouts of their own mingling in the air.  Shouts for honor, for glory, and for China.  The horses reared and before Danny even knew what was happening, he was riding alongside his brothers at arms towards the rising sun.  Towards their destiny.

For three nights they rode, and Danny couldn’t be more thankful for all that practice and training on horseback he had dealt with.  He did grow tired and did get sore, but he now had the drive and endurance to push past it and ride on.  On the fourth day, the soldier’s began to feel the toll of their travels, but they never showed it.  They kept powering through, making their general proud as they pushed on towards the approaching battle, and soon, they grew close to the towering mountains and sprawling forests.  They were getting into avalanche territory – so for the ascent into the mountains, they slowed their horses, traveling close together as their steeds trudged up the snowy incline.  It wouldn’t be long now.

“Hey, Dan, what are city girls like?”

Danny glanced around at Tucker.  “Huh?”

The brown-skinned boy gave him a smirk and a nudge.  “C’mon, Dan, a smart pretty boy like you had to have tons of admirers!  Tell us about city girls!” he encouraged.  

“Yeah!  City girls!”

Shouts of approval went up among the other boys, along with a smattering of whoops and hollers.  Dash looked a little pompous, and Kwan just snorted.

Danny blushed, ducking his head shyly.  “Well, if I’m honest, I wouldn’t know much actually.  My grandfather kept me really sheltered and the matchmaker didn’t like me, so I never courted anyone or have had any suitors… no one really… well, I guess it doesn’t matter now.”

He bit his lip, thinking.  “Still… city girls, huh?  I could tell you about my three older cousins, if you like?  They are beautiful girls, smart and talented!” he laughed fondly.  “Since I was little, they’ve been turning down suitors left and right!”

Even Kwan and Tucker leaned in at that.  There were a couple of piercing whistles from the back.  “YEAH!”

Danny chuckled, waving away their excited shouts.  “Okay, okay!  Well, there’s the oldest, Jazmine.  I call her Jazz.  She was born with the prettiest shade of auburn hair.  It shines like red gold in the sunlight, and she has the loveliest blue green eyes… She’s also the wisest woman I have ever met… She’s graceful and so, so smart.  She has put many men in their place and she has a passion for knowledge.  She has a dream to one day become an advisor to the future emperor himself!  The first female adviser!”

He smiled fondly, shaking his head.  “It’s never been done before but if anyone can do it, Jazz can.”

“WOO!  Introduce ME when the war is over!” someone yelled from the back.

Dash nodded, looking impressed.  “Your cousin sounds ambitious.”

Tucker was alight with interest.  “Tell us about the other two!”

Danny leaned back, smiling softly.  “Okay, well, then there’s the middle eldest, Sam.  Her full name is a very long and horrendous thing and anyone who actually calls her that in person might just lose their tongue~”

He grinned, shrugging.  “She’s really something, tough as nails and won’t take any bull from anyone!  She’s actually the one who taught me how to fight!  She’s not that tall or curvy, not the usual beauty most might think about, but… she’s so… so amazing!  She has this energy about her, and she has a classical beauty that you just don’t find nowadays.  She has shoulder length raven black hair and pale skin.  She wears dark colors, mainly purples and she was born with the most amazing pair of amethyst purple eyes.  She’s really something else and one of my best friends.”  

There were a few whistles, but a few of them just raised their eyebrows at each other.  Kwan, however, looked starry-eyed.  “A-And she’s single?” the big boy asked.  “She’s not a noble or anything, is she?”

He sulked slightly.  “Man, if she is a noble…”

“It wouldn’t matter.”  Danny cut in, smiling encouragingly at Kwan.  “Sam has turned down every lord to ever ask for her hand, every single one.  And you wanna now HOW she turned them down?  How she proved they weren’t worthy?”

He grinned even wider.  “She beat them all in hand to hand combat~”

Kwan looked even more starry-eyed, a light flush over his tan cheeks.  “Wow…”

Tucker nudged him.  “Hey, you ain’t getting a crush on a NOBLE girl, now are ya?” he joked.  He struck a heroic pose, kissing his skinny bicep.  “If it was ME, however~”

Danny just laughed.  “Seriously Kwan, I’ll introduce you to her once this war is over.  I think she would really like you~”

“O-Okay!”

He grinned.  “Now, who wants to hear about my youngest cousin?  Nicknamed the ‘flower of China’ back in the city~?”

Tucker froze.  He stared at Danny, wide-eyed and silent over the loud whistles.  “Your COUSIN is the Flower of China?!” he yelped.  “But she’s like, a princess!!  Kinda!  She’s, like, related to royalty!!”

Danny’s eyes widened slightly in panic before he quickly covered it up.  “They’re my distant cousins, but they are practically the only family I have left besides my grandfather.  They, uh, visited me, when they could.”

He cleared his throat, quickly changing the topic.  “A-Anyway, Paulina is my third cousin, named after a foreign flower her mother had received while pregnant with her.  We call her Lin, however, for her beautiful jade green eyes.”

Danny smiled softly, shrugging.  “Lin is a beautiful woman, with golden tanned skin and long, honey brown hair.  She can dance, can sing, can play a number of musical instruments, and she’s just… she’s just the kindest girl you will ever meet.  She’s smart too, can talk to you about anything and everything and she LOVES animals.  Her hand is the most highly sought after in the city… and while she has had many suitors, not one has ever passed on to a second meeting with her.”

Everyone whistled and crowed.  “LIIIIN!”

“Sounds bodacious~!”

“I liiiiiike~!”

Danny laughed, but the smile faded when he spotted Tucker’s expression.  He was squinting at the blue-eyed boy – like he was trying hard to remember something…

The little prince squirmed a little under Tucker’s examination, raising an eyebrow.  “Is something wrong?”

Tucker opened his mouth slowly, glancing at Danny up and down…

Then, he shook his head hurriedly.  “No, no, uh.  Dash!” he called out.  The blonde sat up, glancing around.  “You’ve got a girl!  What’s she like?”

Danny eyed Tucker suspiciously, but his curiosity got the best of him and he turned to smile at Dash as well.  “Yeah, tell us about the girl who fell for a hundan like you~!”

“HA!”

The blonde laughed, throwing his head back.  “Boys, let me tell you about MY girl!” he announced.  A cheer went up; he waved them down, grinning.  “She… is about eight feet tall and her name starts with a K and ends with a WAN!”

The entire brigade burst out laughing.  Kwan grabbed Dash and yanked off his helmet, putting him in a choke hold.  “AHHH, WIFEY’S GOT ME!  Okay, okay!  Jokes aside…”

Kwan snorted and let him go; Dash picked up his helmet from the ground and brushed the snow off of it.  “Her name is Xing.  I call her my Star~” he told the men.  “Her mom was Chinese and her father was from my country, so she has long, BEAUTIFUL blonde hair.”

He made an hourglass figure with his hands, grinning at his buddies.  “And CURVES to DIE forrrrr~!”

Danny blushed a little at the lewd talk, but still smiled while the other soldier’s laughed and hooted and cheered Dash on.  He looked back at the man, honestly interested in this Star, while the other’s just chatted about her physical features.  “Have you two been together long?  Is she waiting for you, back in your town?”

Dash smiled at the smaller boy, happy at his interest.  “Yeah!  Yeah, she uh… she – WE – actually don’t live that far from here!” he told Danny.

He pointed in the general direction that the army was heading.  “Yes.  We, uh…”

The blonde toyed with his helmet a little, smiling fondly at the memory of his fiancee.  “We’ve been betrothed for a couple years, and if it weren’t for the war we might’ve already been married, but she wasn’t bitter about me going off to be a soldier!” Dash said.  “She’s always been supportive of me, saying things like, ‘You and General Vladimir are cut from the same cloth!’ when I left.  We talked about me becoming an officer, and us living in a big city someday!  She’s a really hard working girl, too!  Really earthy, and she loves that crappy little farmhouse and she has her own ox, and…”

He smiled softly.  “She’s… I love her, y’know?” he said, looking at Danny.  “I love her a lot.  I can’t wait for this war to be over, so we can be together.”

Danny smiled back, feeling honestly happy for his friend because he knew what it was like, to love someone that much.  “She sounds amazing Dash, really.”

He ducked his head shyly.  “For the longest time, I didn’t know what it was like to love and BE loved, not really.  Family love and something more… y’know, passionate, are very different and I didn’t know what it was like.”

His voice dropped to a whisper that only Dash, and maybe Kwan and Tucker, were able to pick up since they were focusing on Danny in that moment.  “Un-until recently…”

Dash’s eyes lit up.  “Really?  You mean you found somebody?”

For once he seemed to know to keep his voice low.  “Is it who I think it is?” he whispered, grinning excitedly.  “It’s the general, isn’t it?”

Danny blushed pink, but nodded shyly with a small smile, voice hushed.  “Y-yeah… yeah it is…”

Dash’s smile looked like it might split his face in two.  “Dan, that’s GREAT!” he whispered enthusiastically, punching his shoulder gently.  “Like–!  Okay, quick question though…”

The prince blinked at him.  “Y-yeah?”

“Um…”

The big blonde glanced around, back at Kwan and Tucker – who were debating hotly who would be the better wife, Sam or Lin – then glanced back at Danny.  “It’s kinda, like, a weird thing to ask,” Dash admitted, still keeping his voice down.  “But I was talking with Kwan, during our last march.  I wanted him to tell me a little bit more about China, you know?”

Danny shook his head, smiling softly.  “That’s not weird at all!  It’s perfectly fine to ask questions, I would even encourage it!  What do you want to know?”

“No, that’s uh, he TOLD me about China!  And all these kinda stories, you know, why some people are so superstitious and whatever but…”

Dash bit his lip, laughing slightly.  “Haha!  Again, it’s dumb, but he told me this one story about that prince that everyone thought died.”

Danny’s eyes widened.

“And–”

Suddenly, their horses stopped and whinnied as they nearly collided with the horses in front of them.  Dash jumped, startled, and pulled back on the reins.  “Whoah!  Whoah…” he murmured.  

His piebald stallion shook its head, snorting and chewing at the bit in its mouth; Dash patted his steed, then stood up in his stirrups, looking over the seemingly endless column of soldiers that had come to a stop.  “What’s going on up there?” the blonde muttered, brows furrowed.  “I thought we still had a few hours until we reached the pass.  Dan, you’re small, could you kinda–?”

Danny took the distraction with both hands and ran with it, desperate to change the topic of discussion.  “W-well, let’s go find out what the hold up is!”

He steered his horse forward, pushing through the suddenly still crowd as he and Dash moved forwards, craning their heads around to try and see what was going on.  Danny’s brows furrowed as they got closer to the front.  “Is… Is that smoke?”

Beside him, the prince felt his friend’s body stiffen in fear.

“Oh gods…” Dash whispered.

Danny stared at his friend, wide-eyed.  For the first time, he saw pure terror fill Dash’s face; the blonde was white as a sheet as he stared up at the pillar of smoke.  

“No… no no no…!”

Before Danny could stop him, Dash had yanked off his helmet and vaulted off his horse – running through the snow, towards the horrible red glow in the distance.  

“DASH!”

Danny scooped up his fallen helmet and raced after him on his steed, barely noticing that Tucker had come forth to grab the reigns of Dash’s horse to hold it steady.  The man was fast, even in the snow, and Danny barely caught up with him at the edge of glow…

It was then, that Danny saw it.  Complete, and utter destruction.  An entire village, a few miles wide, burned to the ground.  Dark, heavy smoke billowed up from the blackened ashes of the fallen buildings, ash and snow blending together on the wind.  There was no sound save for the creaking wood and the shriek of carrion birds.  No life, anywhere…

“Oh… oh gods, no…”  Danny breathed, sliding off of his horse on unsteady legs, nearly slipping straight into the snow as what he was seeing, truly registered.  

Dash’s breath was fast and erratic, pupils contracted in utter horror.

“Star…” he gasped.  “Star…!”

He pointed, into the distance, where the blackened skeleton of a farmhouse stood.  “That’s, that’s our, oh gods, STAR!”

Dash ran back to his horse and leapt on.

Tucker recoiled as the blonde took off.  “Dash, what’re you– DASH!”

The sound of trotting hooves approached, announcing Captain Lancer on his high-stepping black horse. “The general’s orders are to search for survivors,” he told them urgently, stressed out.  “But we have to leave at sunset or we won’t reach the pass.  Hurry!”

Lancer smacked his horse on the rump, sending it galloping back towards the point of the army.  

Danny will later wonder what came over him out there, but he suddenly found himself in a frenzy of motion, turning to Kwan, Tucker and the other soldiers from their quarter as they approached.  “You all heard the captain, we don’t have much time!  Dash is searching near the east side!  Kwan, you take some soldiers to the south and Tucker, help those in the west!  The rest should start here, searching at the northern edge!”

“What about you??”  Tucker asked, already starting to steer his horse towards to western gates, two black crumpled towers of burnt wood.  

Danny forced himself not to focus on it, instead climbing back on his stallion.  “I’m going to help Dash!  The more soldiers we have spread out over the village, the faster we can find survivors and the injured!  GO!!”

Danny didn’t wait to see if the others listened to him as he took off after Dash, pulling to a sudden stop as he neared the burned down farm house on the edge of the village.  He could see Dash tearing his way through it, desperately calling for his betrothed.  Danny jumped off his horse and moved to the barn nearby, trying his hardest to just find survivors, and not listen to Dash’s heart wrenching screams…

“S-Star?!  STAR!!”

Danny swallowed through the lump in his throat, struggling to move through the crunch of debris.  Blackened animal bones cracked by the heat, and the smell of burning meat invaded his nostrils… along with a stench that he remembered from his brief time in Pariah’s camp.  The stink of men and unwashed horses, and that foul oil they seemed to douse themselves in to keep the parasites away…

Suddenly, Danny spotted something pale among the ashes.  He picked his way over to it – heart sinking in his chest – and pulled it up from the wreckage.  Dark chunks of burnt wood fell like powder, pattering softly at his feet.

A torn, embroidered handkerchief hung in his fingers… splattered with cold, dry blood.

_“War is ugly, and it’s bloody, and you are going to see things.  Things that you really can’t unsee.”_

_Valerie gave him a look.  “Do yourself a favor, kid,” the woman told him.  “Don’t let yourself linger on the people you weren’t able to save.  It sounds cruel.  But it’s how you stay sane.”_

Danny clutched the tattered cloth close, then turned around and kept searching.  

For hours, the soldiers searched until they just couldn’t anymore, until they had looked everywhere, turned over every leaf and every rock and…

Found nothing.  There were no survivors.

And now, it was time to leave, to head to the pass.  But this time, the soldiers did so with much, much heavier hearts…

Danny watched Dash as he slowly walked away from the village, leading his horse behind him by the reins and keeping his head down.  The little prince quietly walked over, his white armor lending him the illusion that he floated over the ash itself – like a spirit – to stop before the other man.  He didn’t say a word, because there was nothing to say.  Instead, he reached forward, and hugged Dash tight, caring not of the soldiers around him as he expressed his sorrow and his compassion for the other man.

And when he finally pulled away, he placed the handkerchief in Dash’s hand…

The blonde’s dirty fingers closed around it.  Dash met Danny’s eyes – tears streaming down his cheeks, collecting the ashes as he went.  “Thank you…” he whispered, his voice breaking.

Danny was silent for a long moment, just walking beside the other boy as they slowly made their way back to the regrouping soldiers.

“Dash…”

The blonde glanced at him, but said nothing.  Danny sighed, then straightened his spine, hard eyes looking straight ahead.  “The answer to your question… from earlier…”

He took a deep breath…

“Yes.”

The prince turned to look at him, blue eyes icy.  “Yes… and you have my promise.  My VOW.  That I will help you do, whatever it takes, to make them pay for this… for ALL of this…”

Danny faced forward again, eyes nearly glowing with his rage.  “I want those animals… out of my damn country…”

The blonde gave him a weak, pained smile.  “You… Y-You’re going to be Emperor one day… with all those riches and all the power you want…” he said, voice still hoarse from his cries.  He swallowed, trembling in his armor.  “What are you doing here, with us…?  We…”

He grit his teeth, bowing his head as his tears flowed anew.  “W-We couldn’t even save one stupid little mountain town…!”

Danny was silent for a moment, staring up at the falling snow.  “That story Kwan told you about the spirit prince… what did he say?”

Dash’s face crumpled.  “I don’t know, I–!”

“‘Cursed from birth, the boy was.  Skin and hair like icy snow and eyes like blue hellfire.  Born half dead, killed his mother on his way into this world and drove his own father to kill himself due to madness, before he had even turned one.  Bad omen, cursed, ghost, spirit, phantom, DEMON…’”

Danny finally turned to look at Dash, face blank.  “My nannies and caretakers tried to kill me when I was a baby.  They abandoned me, and hoped the Emperor or anyone else wouldn’t notice till I had died.  Others from outside the palace tried again, when I was child.  Again.  And again.  ‘Kill the demon, kill the spirit, remove the curse’…”

He turned back to look at the snow.  “That’s why I’m here, Dash.  Because no one, except for my grandfather, and my cousins, even wanted me alive.  I am… tolerated at the palace, at best.  I’m here, because I wanted to prove to my people, to my country, to MYSELF, that I’m not a demon… I’m not a curse… I’m a man, willing to DIE, for his people…  for the country he loves… for the country that… that didn’t want him…”

Blue eyes closed, snow catching on his lashes like tears.  “That’s why I’m here, Dash…”


	11. Chapter Eleven

All through Danny’s story, the big blonde bit his lip so hard it would have bled, if not for the cold that saturated his entire body, tears freezing before they could hit the snow.  “So… what stopped you…?” he whispered.  “From just… giving up?”

Danny smiled then, and opened his eyes.  He turned, and looked towards the far hill where they could both see General Masters looking over his soldiers, giving them the attention and heart they needed, before they rode again.

“Him…” Danny breathed.  “He was once betrothed to my mother, but when he learned of my parent’s death, he came back to the palace to mourn… and found me.  Alone, scared, hungry, cold… barely a year old.  He found me, held me, and brought me to my grandfather.  He saved me…

“And he stayed.  He taught me, took care of me, guided me and now… now, he loves me.  He was the first man, outside of my grandfather, to tell me I wasn’t a curse, to tell me I was… I was special.  That I was WANTED.  He told me over and over again, but my ears were closed.  Until now.”

He looked over at Dash, smiling softly.  “He told me, that I would become a great ruler one day.  And you know what?  I believed him.  Because Vladimir Masters, doesn’t tell a lie.  So I studied hard and learned everything I could, even the things the advisers would rather I didn’t know…”

His smile widened.  “I ran to him when I escaped the huns, ran into the snow, instead of back to the palace.  And that was the best damn thing I ever could have done.  Dash, look at me!  I’m a soldier now!  I have FRIENDS!  I can do something now, for my people, for my country!  Things I could NEVER do back at the palace!  I have a PURPOSE!  A will to live!”

He turned back to look up at the general, smiling at him from a distance.  “I will prove to China that I can be a good emperor… and I will do it, by fighting for them, and by bleeding for them…”

Vlad caught Danny’s eyes.  He smiled woefully across the snow… then turned his gaze onto Dash.

The big boy swallowed, his red, streaming eyes meeting the general’s evenly.  Something passed between the two in the freezing air.

Vlad nodded at the blonde firmly – his eyes hard – then turned his stallion, riding back to the front of the formation.  Dash lowered his gaze to the snow, suddenly humble in the face of the shadows that loomed over him.  But still he breathed… heavy breaths turning to plumes of icy mist…

He gazed down at the scrap of embroidery for a long moment.

Then, his eyes hardened, too.  “I don’t know about China…” Dash murmured.  

He tucked Star’s embroidery into his belt, turned, and knelt before the phantom prince.  “I’m not brave.  I’m not smart.  I’m not even strong for myself.”

The slender boy started to reach out for him, to beg him to stand up.  “Dash –!”

“But there is no other man that I would rather have as my emperor!”

Dash looked up, meeting Danny’s eyes; not as a prince, or even a role model.  As a friend.  

“…Dan.”

There was a long moment of silence where the little prince just stared down at Dash with wide, unbelieving eyes.  But then, he smiled and fell to his knees in the snow before the other man.  He wrapped his arms around his shoulders, his own shaking just slightly.  "Thank you, Dash… thank you…“

They held each other for a moment, seeking comfort from the other for different reasons, but still finding the comfort there.  Finally, they pulled away and stood, rejoining Tucker and Kwan among the troops.  They climbed up onto their horses, gave each other one last encouraging nod…

And turned their steeds to follow their general, towards battle.

The companies of men cleared the surrounding forest, and ascended up the snowy slopes towards the pass itself.  At the front, Vlad found himself growing uneasy as he caught sight of an empty stretch of snow – clear of even hoofprints – between two massive cliffs.  They had yet to see a single hun.

“I don’t like this…” Vlad murmured to Lancer.

“What do you want to do, sir?” the captain whispered back.

The general thought about it for a moment, then whispered a command into the other man’s ear.  Lancer nodded.  As he pulled his horse back, Vlad made a hand signal to slow down to a walk; his command went down the line, and soon the Chinese army was moving at a crawl.

Tucker tried to stand up in his stirrups, looking frustrated at the slow pace.  “What’s going on?” he whispered.

Kwan glanced around them at the tall, rocky cliffs.  Huge amounts of snow weighed down their peaks, small bits of their frozen payload hitting the ground forebodingly; any word spoken too loudly would ring unhindered down the pass for all to hear.  “Do you think this might be an ambush?” the man murmured, trying to stay quiet.

Danny opened his mouth to answer–

Then, suddenly, the twang of a bowstring and a whizz of an arrow split the air.  The prince had turned around barely in time to see Dash’s dagger slice through the air in front of his face.  

Two halves of an arrow hit the snow.

“OH yeah, TWO FOR TWO!” Dash yelled.

He turned his horse, rearing it above the others.  “GENERAL!”  

“IT’S AN AMBUSH!” Danny screamed.

Vlad snarled and drew his sword.  With a great roar, dozens of huns emerged from their hiding places in the snow on the cliffs, raising bows as big as themselves to fire on the Chinese troops.  “Oh, gods, down!!” Dash swore, ducking Danny’s head.

“Shields up!” Vlad ordered, voice thundering through the canyon.

The soldier’s responded immediately, raising their shields and stopping the onslaught of arrows from reaching their target.  The soldiers tried to move forward, but the snow and the endless barrage kept them from doing much.  Danny scowled in determination and slid off of his horse.

“Dan, what are you doing?!”  Kwan whispered loudly, looking at him in confusion and distress.

Danny wrapped a piece of his headdress around his face and drew out his white fans, blue eyes meeting his friends.  “There are only a few dozen out there.  I’m going to take care of the left flank.  The wind is in their eyes and they won’t see me.  If I get rid of them, then the rest of us can push forward through the right line!”

“That’s suicide!”  Tucker cried, hidden under his shield.  “What if they spot you??”

“They won’t!”  Danny replied, already pulling away from the troops.  “Our own archers have them busy.  Have faith in me!”

And then, before their very eyes, Danny slipped away into the white snow, vanishing.  For the longest time, they heard and saw nothing save for the roaring huns and the beating of arrows against the shields.  Long moments passed, and they all began to wonder if they would have to find Dan’s body in the snow later… when a sudden shift occurred.  It was subtle, but then….

“What in the–GAAAAH!!”

“AHHHH!”

The sound of sharp, fast moving blades slicing through flesh filled the air, the gurgling cries of the wounded and dying following not far behind.  When the first troops noticed the chaos happening on their left, Dash turned to Kwan.  “Wifey, follow me!” he shouted.  Kwan nodded.  “Tucker, stay under the shields!”

“Hey!” came an indignant yelp.

“Everyone else ready to kill some huns, FOLLOW ME!!” Dash yelled.

The soldiers glanced at each other – unsure if they were under orders or not – but Dash and Kwan had already broken away, charging their horses up the flank.  A dozen of them followed, roaring battle cries and swearing vengeance.  They rode down on the huns, quickly dispatching the enemy archers that had been left to ambush them.  Soon, the snow was no longer a pristine, gleaming white.  Red bloomed across the ice…

And standing in a small circle of four or five huns… was little Danny.   

His armor somehow remained untouched by blood, flicked clear by his sharp movements – for he was no longer the clumsy boy that managed to slice Pariah Dark.  But his fans dripped crimson onto the snow and even from afar, his friends could see how badly he was shaking, how wide his eyes were…

The first killing… was never the easiest…

Dash got down off his horse – sword dripping blood into the snow – and gripped the back of Danny’s neck reassuringly, squeezing lightly.  “You okay?” he asked.  The victory cries of their own archers echoed through the canyon as the few surviving huns fell back.

The prince started to nod, then stopped, shaking his head with a whimper.  “No… no, I’m not…”

He glanced down at his fans and with a grimace quickly flicked them, harshly.  Blood spattered onto the snow, sliding off of the polished metal and waxed cloth like oil.  Danny was still shaking as he folded his fans and placed them back in their holsters, his face sickly pale.

“I don’t think… I will ever get used to that…”  he whispered, leaning slightly into Dash’s hand.  “And I don’t think I want to…”

Dash glanced at him in concern, brows furrowed.  

He looked back at Kwan.  “Take him to the back of the lines,” he told him.  The Chinese man nodded and wrapped an arm around Danny, pulling him back down towards the passage; the rest of the soldiers followed, Dash bringing up the rear.  “There should be some time to get him there before–”

Then, a low, guttural horn sounded.

Barely below the crest of the hill, Danny turned – and his heart dropped into his stomach.

War drums thudded through the canyon as a lone, dark figure emerged, just visible over the high ground.  But even from this distance, Danny would recognise that figure anywhere.

“Pariah…”

Danny shook himself away from Kwan’s arms and turned towards the shocked soldiers, all staring up at the king of the huns with barely contained fear.  He glowered, straightening his spine and pushing away his own nausea and fear.  He turned back to his friends, determined to keep them and himself from falling under the spell of fear the huns seemed to have.

“He is just a man!”

The troops nearby him startled, turning to look at the small soldier.  He swung up onto the back of his horse and looked out at the few men that looked at him, eyes bright with determination.

“He is only a man and you should not fear him as anything else!”  he snapped, voice clear in the silence, unknowingly echoing up the mountain.  “I should know!  Before I made it to the camp, I was captured by the huns, a prisoner to Pariah himself!  And you know what I learned?”

Danny whirled around and pointed back up at the mountainside, towards Pariah and his slowly approaching army.  “He is nothing more than cocky, arrogant man that failed to search me for a weapon, failed to look past my small build and my pretty face!  And you know what I did?”

Across the snow, Pariah’s eyes narrowed…

Danny grinned, wide and vicious, as he turned back to Kwan and Tucker, both looking up at him like he was mad, but still enraptured with his story.  He didn’t notice the other soldiers watching him, listening.  “I sliced his chest open!  I WOUNDED the king of the huns and I ESCAPED his army, released his horses, and traveled a week in the cold and snow to make my way here, to China’s army!”

Slowly… a horrible smile spread across Pariah’s face.  

He had finally found the little prince.

“He’s just a man!” Danny claimed to his friends, unbeknownst to his fate.  “He is an enemy of China and I REFUSE to show him any fear, and neither should any of YOU!”

“Pretty words, soldier!”

Danny glanced around for the source of the voice, and realized it was the general himself.  

Vlad’s eyes flashed warningly.  “Get back to your position!” the man ordered.

Danny kept his face blank as he bowed to the general, showing him the respect he deserved and turned his horse around, not once looking back as he made his way deeper through the throng of troops, avoiding the wide, curious eyes that followed him.  Danny Had not meant to get so carried away, but he didn’t regret a word he said, cause he could see many of the soldiers had stopped shaking, stopping looking up at Pariah like he was some kind of demon from hell.  Danny knew demons, and Pariah was not one.  The hun was simply a human monster, and he should be treated as nothing else.  

Soon, he was swallowed up by the dark armors and clothes and shields, the phantom soldier kept hidden…

For now.

Vlad breathed out sharply and turned his eyes back onto Pariah.  The huge hun leered at them from across the snow.

Thanks to Danny’s little speech, now he knew.

As the Chinese army watched, Pariah raised his arm… and two more horsemen emerged from over the crest of the hill.

Then ten…

Then a hundred…

Then a thousand…!

Then – all at the back of Pariah Dark – the dark mass of the hun army loomed like a stain on the snow.  Just over one thousand stinking, hulking men with blood in their teeth and blades sharper than broken glass.  Jeering and horrible war cries shook the icy ground.  A falcon screeched overhead, flying over the Chinese army, across the no-man’s land, and landed on Pariah’s powerful shoulder.

His captains trotted closer to their leader.  “Find that little phantom boy and bring him to me,” Pariah smirked.  His falcon shrieked hungrily.

“And the others?” one of them asked.

Their leader paused – then grinned down at the famous Vladimir Masters.  

Their eyes met, like flint on steel.

“KILL THEM ALL!!” Pariah roared.

The huns bellowed in approval behind him.  The falcon took off, his black stallion reared, and Pariah Dark launched his army forward down the slope with a war cry that would make a man’s blood run cold.

Vlad snarled, a mess of despair and fury churning in his chest; the familiar, terrible chill of battle fever flooded his veins.  “I’m sorry, my prince…” he whispered.

The general raised his voice.  “PREPARE TO CHARGE!”

Their war horns sounded.  Danny looked up at the approaching huns with a sudden sense of foreboding.  The last of their army… and yet, it was still so large!  There was no way his fellow soldiers weren’t coming away from this unscathed.  They were going to be charging head first into battle, into death.  His comrades, his friends, his brothers!

His lover…

“Prepare the cannons!”  Lancer shouted, riding back towards the left flank.  “Aim them at Pariah!  We cut of the head of the snake, the body shall fall!”

Danny watched as the archers broke away, firing at the approaching huns and knocking down the first wave.  His attention diverted to Lancer and the soldiers he led to the far cliff face, preparing their cannons to fire at the huns.  But they only had three.  If they missed, even once…

It was then that the little prince looked up once more, eyes landing on the glint of his lover’s raised sword in the setting sun… the sun, setting behind the heavy mountain peaks.  

An idea suddenly struck him, and Danny realized that it could be their one, and only chance to demolish Pariah’s army.  

He reared his horse back and galloped out of formation, scooping up one of the largest cannons he could grasp as he went roaring by.  His friends watched him with fear and confusion, Dash barely managing to stop himself from chasing after.  “DAN!  DAN, COME BACK!!”

Danny ignored the calls, eyes narrowing as he raced towards the approaching huns, past the first line troops and past the general himself.  

Vlad blanched at the sight of his prince fleeing from formation.  “DANWEI!!” he cried, unable to stop the name from passing his lips.

Again, Danny painfully ignored the screams of his name, this time by his own lover, eyes squeezed shut for a moment.  They reopened, dark and focused, locking for a split moment on Pariah as the huns descended towards him down the mountain.  

The general swore, sheathing his sword and digging his heels into his horse’s sides.  The stallion leapt forward, whinnying.  

“CHAAAAAAAARGE!!”

The Chinese army was only a few horse-lengths behind their leader.  Hoofbeats thundered through the valley and snow sprayed behind the soldier’s steeds; both armies would converge at the base of the hill – where Vlad could see his prince kneeling down.  That damn boy!  If he didn’t get to him in time, he would be killed!

Danny ignored the sounds of both armies, tuning out the hoofbeats and the screams and war cries.  Instead, he flew off of his horse and crouched before a small rock, leaning his heavy cannon upon it, and aimed.

From an outside observer, it appeared he was aiming for Pariah.  The hun sneered and rode forward hard, determined to reach the boy before he could do anything to him and his army.  But again, Danny ignored the danger fast approaching him, and lit the cannon.

Fifty feet… Thirty feet… TEN.

But just as Pariah raised his sword, bellowing down at the near invisible soldier hidden in the snow, the cannon exploded with a bang, a loud roar filling everyone’s ears as it soared over the hun army, higher and higher…

BOOM!!

The mountains shook, causing the horses to whine and buck, throwing their riders off and running around in circles.  The top of the mountain seemed to implode on itself as snow and ice slid down the sheer rock face, converging on the hun army from behind.

An avalanche, a monstrous one like none had ever seen before.

Pariah whirled back around to face the little phantom prince, the boy smirking up at him from behind his bladed fans as he backed away, eyes screaming a message of hate and wishes of the hun’s DEATH–!

Only for Vlad to unceremoniously scoop him up onto his horse and unsheathe his blade.  “RETREAT!” the general yelled.  

The tip of his flashing blade flicked in a circle, but the Chinese were already fleeing for their lives from the mountain of snow already crashing down on the heels of the opposing army.  Pariah’s pupils contracted in fury–!

He roared – just as Vlad was turning – and brought his sword down.

The Chinese general winced, his entire body jerking in pain.

“Vlad!”  Danny cried.  

But the general held Danny tight to his body and refused to slow down, galloping away from the huns as fast as his stallion could carry them.  His remaining hand slipped on the reins; Danny quickly took control and urged the stallion faster, steering it towards their own army and into the pass.  “HEAD FOR THE CLIFFS!!” the boy yelled.

The soldiers were way ahead of him, running as fast as they possibly could towards the rock face, determined to hide behind the slope before they were all buried alive.  Danny glanced behind him, seeing hundreds upon hundreds of huns swallowed up by the snow and pushed clear off the mountain, ice and snow clearing the once dark stain that marred it.  

The general and the little prince just barely managed to ride around the rocky cliffs, pulling themselves out of the avalanche’s reach…

Only for Danny to once again be taken ahold of, and torn out of Vlad’s hands.  The prince screamed as Pariah’s huge hunting falcon knocked him clean off of the general’s horse and into the snow.  He would have been fine, had the falcon not knocked him right into the side of a sharp rock.  Danny cried out as his side was cut and the back of his head was bashed sharply by the frozen stone.  The phantom prince disappeared underneath the fast moving snow, swallowed up as the frozen slush hurtled towards the edge of the mountain…

Vlad let out a shapeless cry of desperation and yanked his horse back around.  “DAN!”

Dash straightened up at the shout.  He turned, ignoring Kwan’s yanking at his arm, and he immediately spotted the general; his mind whirling at a hundred miles an hour, the blonde spun, looking around frantically, and grabbed a bow and quiver from a passing archer.  The man didn’t even complain – he was too busy fleeing.

“What are you doing?!” Kwan yelled over the deafening crash of the avalanche.

Dash handed him an arrow.  “Tie a rope onto that.”

His friend stared at him like he’d gone insane… then obeyed.  He handed Dash the arrow, who immediately notched it and aimed at the general’s horse.  “C’mon, c’mon, c’mon, Dan…!” the blonde whispered under his breath, watching their commander.

Vlad plunged his hand into the tumbling snow, feeling his horse scream in distress and flail, trying not to get sucked under.  “DAN!”

Then, he spotted Danny.

Time almost seemed to slow down.

A scarlet flower bloomed across his pale armor, red dark and dripping from pure white locks… and his bright blue eyes closed as he rose to the top of the river of ice… as if they were never to open again…

Vlad felt his heart plummet deep into despair…

Then his expression hardened.  No!  NO!  His prince was NOT DEAD!

The general dug his heels into his stallion once more.  “HAH!” he yelled, spurring the great animal to gallop haphazardly along with the flow of the avalanche.  Vlad scooped Danny’s limp body up, just as they went over the edge–!

Dash drew the arrow back, and shot, straight and true.

The head punched into the shoulder of Vlad’s horse.  The animal roared in pain, but it caught the general’s attention; he yanked it out of his steed and tied the rope to his saddle, just as Kwan, Dash, and even Tucker pulled at the other end, stopping them dead.  Dangling right in midair, over a fathomless gorge.

It was there, as they hung motionlessly in the white silence, that those blue eyes fluttered open once more.  They were dull with pain, but they looked up at Vlad in awareness, ALIVE.  The white headpiece unraveled and flew away on the wind, long starlit locks stained with blood curled around his face, plastered to his forehead.  

The little prince reached up, hand gently laying atop Vlad’s breastplate as Danny slowly became more and more aware.

“V-Vlad…”

Desperate hands clutched Danny close.  “You’re alright, my prince…” Vlad whispered, his vision going dark.  “You’re… alright…”

“Vlad…!”  Danny called out, feeling his general slump forward.  He held him close, wincing in pain as he pulled on his injured side.  He gasped as he felt his hands slip in something warm and wet on Vladimir’s back, pulling his hand away to find it stained red.

“Y-you’re hurt…”  he slurred, swaying precariously as they were slowly pulled up along the cliff, back towards the edge of the mountain.

“That doesn’t… matter…”

“V-Vlad?  VLAD!”


	12. Chapter Twelve

Night fell over the new encampment of the Chinese army, stationed on the cliffs – now clear of snow; any hun that had managed to crawl clear of the snow yet was to be brought before Lancer for judgement.  In the flickering light from the bonfire, Danny’s pure white hair gleamed orange as he picked at his dinner of rice and dumplings.  Kwan glared at anyone who stared until they looked away.

“It’s alright, Kwan…”  Danny murmured, voice soft and somber.  “They’re in shock, I understand.  I…”

His face crumpled slightly, in turmoil over what had happened, over the lives lost, over his own pain, over his lover who was still sleeping in the medical tent after he had been stitched up…  Over the fact that Dash was now at risk for expulsion or even execution for leading the party to his rescue out of turn… Over the feeling that everything he had managed to accomplish these past few months was now just… slipping through his fingers…

The men around the campfire were silent, and Danny could only be thankful that the curious eyes on him were out of shock and wonder, not out of disgust or mistrust.  Still…

“I’m… not really hungry anymore…”  he mumbled, setting his plate aside and drawing his knees to his chest.

“Your majesty.”

Both Kwan and Danny stood as Lancer approached.  The fat man swallowed, then bowed deeply.  “General Vladimir is awake,” he told them.  “He has asked to see you and your friends.”

Danny saw Tucker stand up next to Kwan, sharing confused looks with one another, before turning to follow the prince as he left the campfire.  Soldiers watched them go, whispering among themselves as they passed.  Danny held his head high and kept walking.  He was used to whispers following him wherever he went around the palace.  But now, unlike then, he paid them no heed, allowing the doubts to roll off of him like water on stone.

Finally, they reached the medical tent and Danny couldn’t hold himself back from rushing forward.

Vlad was sitting up in his cot, leaning back against a stiff pillow.  His chest was bandaged up and he looked tired, but he also looked far better than he did when they first reached the camp.

The general smiled at Danny quietly, reaching his hand out for him.  “Dan…”

“Vlad!”  Danny cried as he rushed forward, sliding to his knees beside the general.  He reached out to touch him, but held himself back, not wanting to hurt the man.  So instead, he took hold of his large hand and pressed it too his cheek, feeling his warmth and pulse through tough, callused skin.

“You’re alright…”  he breathed, eyes slipping closed.  “You had me… so worried…”

Vlad just sighed in relief, stroking Danny’s cheek.  Meanwhile, Damien came out from behind him, wiping his hands on a warm, damp cloth.  “Frankly, you had a reason to be,” the man informed the prince.  “That was one ugly thing that sliced him.”

Tucker gave the doctor a weak smile.  “And that’s not even talking about the sword!” he joked halfheartedly.

That earned him a few chuckles.

Vlad held back a wince and sat up.  “I look worse than I feel,” the general told them.  “I’ll live.  Right now, I wish to address the actions in combat that I saw today.”

He glanced sternly at Lancer.  “Where is the blonde one?  This isn’t all of them.”

The fatter man straightened up, eyes flicking between Danny and then back to Vladimir.  “H-He disobeyed your orders, sir.  He openly lead an attack that broke formation–”

Vlad quickly sucked in a breath, a hand flying to his forehead.  “You… EGG ROLL!”

The general glared at Lancer.  “Fetch him NOW!”

“R-R-Right away, sir!!”

Once the captain had bustled out of the medical tent, Vlad aimed a look at Danny.  “While we are waiting for him, Danwei, your actions today may have won this war, but have you NO sense of the consequences of your own actions or where you simply not thinking?!” he barked, anger and worry struggling for dominance over his tone.  “You might have been killed!!”

“We ALL would have been killed!”  Danny protested, glaring back at him.  “You saw how many there were!  A full on attack would have lead to many deaths, TOO many!  I did what I felt I must to ensure the safety of my fellow brothers!”

He sagged a little, slumping forward.  “I… I know what I did was rash and foolhardy, but I just… I KNEW I could do it.  I knew that I could take them out, with one hit, and then I wouldn't… I wouldn’t lose you, or my friends…  I have a duty, a RIGHT, to protect my MEN.”

He glared back at Vlad, something hard entering his eyes.  “You were out there, rushing to the front of the line.  My safety and that of the troops was all you thought about, not your own.  So forgive me, if I felt I had the right to wish YOU safe as well.”  

His expression softened as he cupped Vlad’s cheek.  “I can’t lose you, my general…  I can’t…”

There was a moment of silence… then the man relented with a groan, holding Danny’s face and bringing it close to his own.  “I won’t lose you either, my prince,” he whispered, stroking his cheeks.  “Not now, and not in the future.  You have my word on that.”

Blue eyes fluttered shut, a shaky sigh leaving Danny as he pressed closer.  “Oh, Vlad…”

“Ummm…”

The general raised his brows at Tucker, who was shifting awkwardly towards the entrance flap.  “Should we leave, or something…?” the boy asked.

“Stay.”

Vlad kissed Danny on the forehead, opening himself for the prince to curl up in his lap, then glanced sternly at Kwan and Tucker.  “I wish to speak with all of you, once the last member of your little party shows up.”

Danny didn’t say anything at that, just curled up close to Vlad’s chest, movements slow and gentle so as not to hurt his general.  He tucked his head under the man’s chin, then looked up at them all curiously, keeping himself from asking the question they were all wondering until Dash got there.

It was a few silent, awkward minutes before a pair of footsteps crunched through the snow, approaching the medical tent.

Dash – extremely pale from the cold – opened the flap.  “You wanted to see me, sir?” the boy asked faintly.  He rubbed his wrists and fingers to try to get the blood back into them, keeping his eyes down and his shivering to a minimum; for the past two hours he had been tied to a pole in the snow – next to a pile of beheaded huns – awaiting his own judgement for stepping out of line.  Danny and his friends had been forbidden from seeing him.  It stood to reason he would look a little pale.

The prince sat up a little in distress when he saw his friend in such a state.  “Dash!”

He reached out for the man, about to stand up again, but Vlad’s arms tightened around him just as Kwan and Tucker beat him to it.  The two boys surrounded Dash, the big Chinese man wrapping his arms around his shoulders to share his warmth while Tucker took over rubbing at his hands and arms.  “Gods, you’re freezing!  Come on, man, let’s get you seated by the fire!”

Dash shook his head, weakly pulling back on the grip of his friends.  “No, I c-came to answer the g-general’s –”

“You’re hardly going to give me an acceptable answer when you’re frozen half to death,” Vlad told him sternly.  The blonde glanced at him, startled.  “Warm yourself and then we shall proceed.”

As he spoke, he gently rubbed Danny’s hips and loosened his hold on the boy – silently giving him permission to go to Dash.

Danny glanced up at Vlad, making sure it was really okay.  The silent nod he received was all he needed to stand up, giving the general a kiss on the side of his mouth before quickly going over to the fire.  He waited till Dash sat down before draping himself over Dash’s back, sharing his warmth along with the other two.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.  “If I had known… no, I… I should have been punished with you.”

“Dan–”

“No!  I’m a soldier too, I pledged myself to Vlad’s command!”  he snapped.  “Being the prince should not have excused my rash actions, no more than yours…”

Dash laughed shakily, shivering harder now that he remember what warmth felt like.  “B-B-B-Butt towel, you are n-NOTHING like any r-r-royal I’VE ever met…!”

Tucker gave him a look.  “Man, you’ve NEVER met any royals.”

“W-well, n-no, but you h-h-hear stuff about r-royals!  No o-offense, b-but they have a r-r-rep f-f-f-f-for–”

The slender boy gave him another, more exasperated look as his shivering grew so intense he could barely pronounce his words anymore.  Kwan just patted his shoulder.  “Dan is different, it’s that simple,” the bigger man told Dash.  “He is our friend.”

Danny smiled, eyes going a little misty.  “Yes… I’m your friend, hundan.  I’ll always be your friend…”

He then grinned cheekily, giving Dash a squeeze.  “And you haven’t met my grandfather OR my cousins yet!  I don’t know how royals are supposed to act, besides what my tutors tell me to do, but I don’t think they will meet your expectation, haha!  You just take your time getting warmed up, there’s no rush…”

Danny’s grin turned playful.  “I’ll go distract the general~  You two focus on getting him back into a relatively human temperature!”

The boys laughed as Danny walked away, slinking back into Vlad’s arms and lap.  He nuzzled close, head tucked under his chin and ear pressed to his collarbone, where he could hear his heart beat…

Vlad wrapped his arm around Danny, gazing over at the back of Dash’s blonde head.

“You three have been his friends throughout this hard time.”

The three boys looked back at the general, startled.  “As a man, I thank you for that,” Vlad said earnestly.

Tucker shrugged, rubbing the back of his head.  “With all due respect, sir, we didn’t befriend him as a prince or anything.  He was just Dan, our fellow soldier boy.”

He smiled over at Danny, nodding slightly.  “And I don’t regret a single moment of it!”

The prince smiled, eyes misting over again.  “Tuck, you utter sap.”

Vlad’s expression softened – but then he shook his head, his features severe, and then continued.  “But as a general, understand that you two soldiers,” he said, making Kwan and Dash turn a little paler, “did indeed break formation, and I have to punish you in some way.”

Danny stiffened, turning to look up at his general.  “Vlad…  it was my fault–”

“Danwei, like it or not, your bloodline will excuse you from lashings or dishonorable expulsion from the army, and that we all can be thankful for,” Vlad replied sternly.  “However, these young men have to be held responsible for their actions, both good and bad.”

The prince winced, looking away for a moment before straightening his spine.  “Then… then at LEAST let it go on the record that Dash was following my lead, my orders, as PRINCE.”

He looked back at Vlad.  “I had told him, earlier that same day.  He KNEW who I was, so he was following a royal command.  Kwan followed in his lead, as Dash was our formation leader.  I know this doesn’t excuse going against your command… but still, he did it to follow me, to help me.  And for that, these two have my thanks as the prince of China!”

Vlad took his arm out from around Danny.  “Danwei.”

Danny sighed, slumping in defeat.  “Don’t tell me I just messed things up again, I’m always doing that…  Last time I thanked a maid at the palace, she burst into tears, I swear, I will never get the hang of this!”

“DANWEI!”

The general placed his prince on the cot and stood up tall.  “I want you to understand something, your majesty,” he informed him, his eyes hard.  “If you wish for me to treat you as a soldier, then it would be extremely difficult to treat you as a royal!  I am general of this entire army.  We just won the war against the Huns, but this entire issue will be brought up in court, and I will be put under scrutiny if I knew of your existence among my ranks.  Do you understand what the penalty is for knowingly putting a prince of China in danger?”

“If not for my discoloration and supposed SICKNESS, I would have been a part of your troop YEARS AGO!!”

The tent fell silent.  Danny was all but quivering as he glared down at his own hands.  “You think I’m STUPID?  You think I haven’t read the history of my ancestors, or the princes and emperors and lords before me?  Every single one served their country for a few years of their youth in our army.  It was meant to build up discipline and honor, show the people that even the royals were willing to fight for them.”

His hands clenched.  “But because of my supposed CURSE, my WEAKNESS, I was forbidden from doing so, even though my grandfather would have let me – even wanted me to – the council overruled him!”

Vlad ran his fingers through his hair and growled.  “Not even your grandfather was allowed to see WAR!”

“All right, stop!”

The entrance flap was shoved open and Valerie entered in a swirl of snow, coming between them.  “If your argument is going to reach the gods’ ears themselves, they will forgive me for cleaning this BULLSHIT up between you people!” she exclaimed.  “Because for goodness SAKES!”

Vlad bristled dangerously.  Damien stared wide-eyed at his daughter from across the tent.  “Valerie!”

“Father, forgive me, but I cannot stand this anymore.  I can hear them over my own furnace.”

Danny looked at her with wide, almost starry eyes.  She reminded him so much of his cousins, it nearly made him home sick.  “V-Valerie?”

“Prince–” Valerie bowed jerkily, “–Danwei.  I’ve known of your heritage for a while.  My father told me.  However, he also raised me to believe all men and women are equal, so allow me to speak plainly.”

Vlad shot Damien a look, who quickly looked down.  

The dark-skinned girl turned to Danny.  “Dan – may I call you Dan?”

Danny absolutely beamed at her, looking probably the happiest he had been in a few days.  His smile turned a little sheepish, a feeling that she was likely going to chew him out a bit but he would welcome it gladly if she would just EXPLAIN things to him more plainly than the others would.  “Y-Yeah, sure…”

“Good.”

The woman squinted at Danny.  “Look, Dan, you have confidence issues and you like it better when people don’t treat you like a prince, I get that, but suck it up.  You’re royalty, and you can get what you want.  Deal out some orders!  Go see the Emperor!  Raise some shit!!  These guys are YOUR friends and you’re not going to let anything happen to them, right?  Not on the battlefield and not under some law!”

Danny blinked wide eyes at her, a little stunned, before smiling.  “I… I can do that, can’t I?”

He frowned a little, thinking.  He didn’t want to get them in anymore trouble, so he needed to do this in a way that kept Vlad from having to face the courts and from the boys from having to face dishonorable punishment.  He bit his lip, a little uncertain, before looking back up at Valerie with a hint of desperation.  “My cousin has always been my best council and advisor, but she is not here now.  However, I feel myself jumping around from idea to idea, so, Lady Grey… uh, Valerie, would you do me the honor of serving as my advisor for the moment?”

He smiled sheepishly.  “You’re right, I do have terrible insecurities, but I’m not too proud or too meek to not realise when I need a little advice.”

Valerie looked a little taken aback, then she nodded quickly.  “Uh yeah, sure.  Okay!  Personal advisor speaking now.”

Vlad looked extremely confused.  Dash, Kwan, Tucker, and Damien all just looked scared.  Danny clapped his hands in excitement, standing.  “Wonderful!  Perhaps we could speak outside?  I think some privacy might be needed.”

The two chatted away as they disappeared out of the tent, leaving the men to stare after them in stunned silence.

Vlad looked up at the ceiling, then over at the boys.  

He pointed after the prince.  “I suppose we should–?”

“Wait?” Damien asked.

“–For a verdict… yes…”

The general went back over to his cot and lay down, exhaling quietly; after a second, Dash and Kwan went back to warming themselves by the brazier, and Damien busied himself with grinding herbs.  A few moments passed in silence.

Then, Vlad glanced over at Dash.  “The verdict will be positive if he has anything to do with it,” he told the boy.

Dash nodded, hiding a little smile.  “Yes, sir, I hope so.”

“… Me, too, lad.”

The younger man straightened and looked back at the general.  Vlad gave him a small shrug, his expression softening.  “You may have broken formation, but you also saved my life and his twice,” he murmured.  

Dash blinked.  “Twice?  Sir?”

“The arrows.  I saw that.  Back during our first march, and here.”

Vlad looked at him earnestly.  “I’ve only met a handful of men that could slice an arrow from the air, and none of them were as brave or honorable as you,” he told Dash.  “Even if the law requires me to punish you for stepping out of line, I would hate to lose such a valuable addition to my ranks.  Perhaps if you were an officer, you would do better to make those calls.”

The big blonde turned red at such a compliment from his role model, ducking his head.  “Thank you… General Vladimir, sir.”

The general snorted.  “Just Vlad is fine.”

“…Thank you, Vlad.”

 

~*~*~

 

It was dark and snowy outside, the wind blustering around Danny and Valerie as they made their way to the side of the cliff – away from the others, overlooking the dark, snowy wasteland of the Shin Shu pass.  The girl blew into her hands, rubbing them together for warmth.  “You really did a number on that army, majesty,” she complimented him.  “Look at that mess.”

She glanced at Danny.  “So, why’d you want to speak in private?”

Danny sighed, running a hand through his snow white hair.  For a long moment, he just looked up at the pass with a slightly pained expression, not one of victory like Valerie might have thought.  Then again, Danny had always seemed a bit too gentle for the army…

“I’m aware of my faults, Valerie.  I tend to second guess myself far more than I should, but I can’t help myself.  How I was raised… was not the healthiest or sanest thing for a child, especially one of royalty.  I’m getting better, thanks to Vlad, but I still find myself needing guidance and support.  So, that is why I asked you to become my advisor…”

He turned to look at Valerie.  “No one here will ever admit that Vlad knew who I was before the avalanche.  In fact, no one but myself and those in that tent actually DO know.  My grandfather will know, it’s just like him to know everything, but he will never say a word against him.  I think he expected something like this to happen.  I refuse to have Vlad brought up in court because… because he intends to ask for my hand.  I won’t jeopardize that.”

He frowned.  “But my friends… something needs to be done.  I can’t let them be punished harshly for my own mistakes.  I understand they will need some form of punishment, but Dash has already suffered enough, and Kwan SHOULD be excused for simply following his troop leader…”

He looked back at her, trying to read her expression.  “I have an idea, but I need your advice.”

Valerie’s mouth quirked in indecision.  “Well, tell me your idea first then,” she said, shrugging.  “Because mine was just to tell everybody they’d be imprisoned if they tried to punish your friends.”

Danny laughed in surprise, eyes twinkling in mirth.  “I like that idea too, but I need to be a little more polite, you know?  So, I was thinking…”

He grinned sheepishly.  “What if I hired them?  Made them my royal guards?  They can face punishment under Vlad, as he sees fit, but then they can come and work for me, before the higher ups try to discharge them.”

Valerie bobbed her head.  “Yeah, I guess that would work.  I mean, at least for that Kwan guy.”

“Wait, why just Kwan?”

She glanced at him again.  “Well, he seems like he doesn’t really have a place to go back to, you know?  Those other two, though, you DO have a good bit of their allegiance but it seems like their hearts are in other places.  I think it’d be best for them to serve you, but be able to have a bit more freedom?”

The woman snorted and shook her head.  “I mean, if you made that foreign boy your royal guard, he’d take it so seriously his hair would go white.”

Danny frowned.  “But… in all honesty, DO they have something to go back to?  Both Dash’s and Tucker’s homes were destroyed by the huns, their families are gone…”

He sighed, looking down at the snow.  “I was going to offer Tucker a job with the royal stables, perhaps even one day running it for me, if he wanted to of course…”

He looked back at Valerie, seeking her input.  “Do you have any suggestions?”

Valerie clucked her tongue, thinking for a moment… then squinted at Danny.  “What was the name of that one town Tucker is always parading around talking about?” she asked.  “Wong Fen or something?”

“Fong Wen,” Danny said.  “Why?”

“Well, that was a horse town or something, right?  Wasn’t it pretty important?”

Danny nodded.  “I want to rebuild what I can, but even I know that land is pretty much dead.  Things will need to start from scratch and that will take time.  Until then, I wanted Tucker working with the royal breeders at the stables.  He knows a lot, and I’m hoping he can teach others.  Hopefully, with him, I can rebuild Fong Wen…”

“Great!  So… Tucker’s ‘punishment’ will be to work with baby horses and eventually be on the council to establish a new breeder’s town,” Valerie nodded.  She smirked.  “Ha!  Mayor Tucker~”

“What’s a mayor?”

“I dunno, just, eh, it was dumb.”

The woman shrugged further into her clothes, shivering.  “Okay, now Dash…” she thought aloud.  

She was silent for a few seconds, then raised her brows at Danny.  “You know, I’ve been fitting that guy for years?” she asked.  “I remember when he first joined the army.  He was sixteen and totally devoted to any responsibility anybody gave him~”

Danny smiled.  “He’s loyal, I trust him with my life and so do many of the other troops.”

Suddenly, his eyes widened as an idea struck him.  “Valerie, you said Kwan would do well as my bodyguard, living in the palace, and I agree.  But for Dash… I think he deserves something a little BIGGER…”

Valerie grinned, turning completely around to face the prince.  “Oh~?  Do tell.”

“Like I said earlier, Vladimir intends to ask for my hand.  He plans to marry me.”  Danny’s smile grew wide.  “He’s going to be joining my council, he’s going to become MY Emperor…”

He looked at her with a grin matching her own.  “He needs to train up a new general, OUR general~”

Valerie’s brows raised.  “Huh!”

She nodded, looking down at the snow thoughtfully.  “I think Dash is gonna have a heart attack when he finds out Vladimir’s gonna be grooming him to take his job~” she smirked.

Danny laughed.  “I have no doubt!”  

His smile fell slightly, and he sighed.  “But for this to work, I will have to hand Dash over to Vlad for punishment.  I’m sure Vlad already sees the makings of an officer in him, so I know the punishment will be just, but he won’t send Dash out of the army.  So, to make sure this goes how I want, I need to thank him for saving my life, as the royal I am.”

He straightened his spine, nodding decisively.  “I will reward him, by making him an officer under Vlad’s command.  From there, Vlad can train him and Dash can naturally rise to the standing he deserves, on his OWN two feet.”

“Hey, Dan?”

He glanced at her.  “Yes?”

Valerie smiled at him.  “You’re going to be a hell of an emperor.”

The boy blinked, blushed, then smiled.  “Thanks…  That… means a lot to me…”

The two talked things over some more, before finally heading back to the light of the camps, back to the medical tent.  However, as they returned to the warmth of their victory, their comradery…

The silhouette of a falcon swooped over the moon, screeching down at the snowy pass.

And then, a huge, gloved hand punched through the icy pack – clenched in a death grip around a long, jagged sword.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very heavy smut in this chapter! This is your warning~!

The next morning, the Chinese troops were awakened by a friendly horn from the east; Emperor Clockwork’s reinforcements had finally arrived.  But instead of a battle, they were greeted by about two hundred, very cold troops that had not even dirtied their swords.  Their commanding officer listened to the tale of Prince Danwei with a completely dumbfounded expression, and then bowed to Danny as low as a bow could be, thanking him ardently for their victory.  He swore to bring him, Vlad, and – at Danny’s insistence – Dash, Kwan, and Tucker back to the palace immediately.

Valerie and Damien bid them a friendly farewell; they both had work in the campsite, especially since the next month would most likely be spent among the thousands of others clearing the Shin Shu pass.

“Make a nice victory toast for me!” Valerie laughed, patting Danny’s knee.  “See ya in the palace!  I’m holding you to that nice cushy advisor position.”

The boy swung up on the back of Vlad’s substitute steed, a pretty white mare.  “Thank you~” he beamed.  “And yes, of course!”

“Oh, and uh…”

She leaned close.  “Make sure to take note of any hot concubines~” she whispered, giving him a wink.  “For me, okay~?”

The boy turned pink, but nodded all the same.  “O-okay!  I think…”

The mare whinnied and then took off at a trot, following the others as they left camp.  Troops stopped to wave and shout goodbye, many even bowing and saluting to Danny.  The little prince flushed in embarrassment at their actions, but smiled and waved back until they were out of sight.  Danny sighed, leaning against Vlad’s broad back.

“How… how long, until we reach the palace?”  he murmured, pulling the dark shawl Damien had found for him over his white hair, hiding himself from view and the heat of the sun.  

“A few days ride, my prince,” Vlad murmured.  “In the meantime, rest.  You’ve earned it.”

“I don’t know if I can…”  Danny whispered, holding Vlad all the tighter.  “I don’t think I can truly rest… until my hand is officially yours…”

“Why?” the general asked quietly.

His hand gently went to the prince’s, interlacing their fingers at his stomach.  “You know your grandfather will approve of the marriage.  Why do you worry?”

Danny blushed, pressing his face into Vlad’s broad back.  “I know… but I want it to be official.   No more of those advisors tossing me at lords and ladies, no more lords and ladies tossing themselves at YOU… It will be official, we will be betrothed…”

He flushed an even brighter shade of red, shoulders hunching slightly.  “And… you know I am long over age… I turned 17 this year, and it is time for me to marry.  The wedding… will be very soon…”

Blue eyes lowered shyly.  “And then I will be yours…”

Vlad smiled softly, squeezing Danny’s hand.  “You have always been mine, your majesty…”

Danny shivered from the low tone.  “Mentally, emotionally…  I want to be yours in everyone’s eyes and… I…”

The poor boy had never looked so red.  “I… have yet to give all of myself to you…  I wanted to wait, till we were married and I…”

There was a moment of silence…

“…And you…?” Vlad murmured, feeling his heart skip a beat.  “You… what?”

Small, pale hands clenched against Vlad’s toned stomach.

“… I want it…”  came a low whisper, heavy with meaning and shy, virgin desire.

Vlad glanced at Danny over his shoulder, stunned at the boy’s tone.  His young prince flushed brightly against his back; he could feel his breath, quick and anxious.  “You don’t want to wait…” he murmured, turning his eyes back to the front.  “I understand…”

The sensation of fear, the reality of death, not wanting to leave anything unfinished even if the fight was over… Vlad knew that feeling.  He knew it very well.

“When?”

The little prince shivered, keeping his eyes down.  “I… gods, Vlad… I want it, but…”

He sighed, shaking his head.  “You know I can’t hide anything from my grandfather, and I can’t dishonor him by… by completely giving myself away before we exchange vows… you know how that looks… but I… I…”

He was shivering now, so worked up.  “I want to know… what it’s like.  To… to have you inside me…”

“…Tonight.”

There was a dark, carnal quality to Vlad’s voice as he spoke to the phantom prince.  “I will find a place, tonight, once the others are asleep.  And then I will come for you…”

The little prince trembled, panting lightly against Vlad’s back.  After a moment, he nodded his agreement, knowing that the general would take care of him…

The ride seemed to pass on torturously slow with the hot sun overhead and the air becoming warmer and warmer the further down the mountain they got.  Finally, Danny just closed his eyes and fell into a light doze, but even his dreams were heated and full of the dark, rich tones of Vlad’s voice…

When he next opened his eyes, it was to find that the sun was setting and they were setting up camp.  He shyly glanced at Vlad as he helped him off the horse, before turning away to help the others prepare the tents.  They had few, but Vlad still had the largest, as a general, and the other commanders only thought it proper that the prince stay there, where it was more comfortable and safe.  He flushed at the heated look Vlad passed him, and wordlessly agreed.

He ate dinner with his friends, trying to act normal, but they all seemed to notice he was a little on edge.  They all assumed it had to do with him sharing a tent with Vlad.

It only they knew…

Vlad set off for awhile, claiming he was going scouting and to also stretch out his legs and back after so long riding.  Danny went to bed when the others did, watching silently as the campfire was doused to a soft glow of embers.  He hid away in the large tent, changed out of his outer layers till all he wore were soft pants and a robe…

He did not have to wait long.

A dark figure slipped into the tent.  Danny’s breath caught, blue eyes wide, as he took Vlad’s hand.  Wordlessly, they left into the night.

Danny didn’t even pay attention to where they were going; their surroundings blurred, until he was only aware of the warmth of his general’s skin, and placing one foot in front of the other.  They were climbing.  So many years of longing, the months of watching from afar, waiting… those nights that they had spent together in his tent… ending the war, all the time and social barriers that had stood between them.  None of it mattered now…

Finally, Vlad stopped.  He turned to face Danny, interlacing their fingers and gripping the back of his neck, and kissed him deeply.

With a little gasp, the prince’s lips parted under Vlad’s and young arms came up to wrap around his shoulders.  Pale, trembling fingers dug into silver locks and darkening blue eyes slid shut in bliss.

“V-Vlad…”

The older man gently drew back, stroking his hands through Danny’s hair, and smiled dazzlingly down at his prince.  “Look, Danwei…” he whispered.

Vlad turned to one side and showed the place that he had found for them.  Clear, blue green water glittered like diamonds in the starlight, spilling over the edge of snowy banks, falling from high above to pool into a steaming, frothing mountain hot spring.  Lilies spun in the water, rooted between smooth black rocks.  Their heady, sweet scent was carried in the moonlit mist.

Danny looked down at the spring in awe, smiling widely at the sight.  “Oh, Vlad!  I love it!  It’s beautiful!”

He turned around to smile up at the general, only for his eyes to widen slightly and his cheeks to turn pink.  Vlad had already begun to disrobe, tossing his shirt aside on a nearby flat black rock, while his dark, lidded eyes stayed locked on Danny.  The prince trembled, ducking his head for a moment, before clumsily undoing the clasps of his own robe.  Even though Danny had seen the general in multiple forms of undress, it always caught him unawares each time.  It also made him nervous and shy as he too realised he would soon be nude once more before Vlad.

Vlad laughed quietly at the look on Danny’s face.  “It’s all right, my love…” he reassured him.  “I’ve seen you like this before…”

Danny’s flush just grew brighter, spreading down his neck.  “I know…  I’m still nervous, I guess.  It always surprises me, that you… that you find me attractive… I mean… I…”

He frowned, shaking his head.  “Damn, I know you do, you said you love me, but still… sometimes…”

Vlad took his hands, kissing one first, then the other.  “Will you do something for me, Prince Danwei?” he murmured.  Gazing the prince deep in the eyes… he took a step back into the warm water, drawing Danny after him.

Danny had to hurry to step out of the pants he had not even realised Vlad had helped pull down, stuttering a little as his skin met the warm water.  He shivered as he was pulled further in, pale skin flushing a little pink from the heat and his blush easily spreading down to his chest.  He blinked up at Vlad with slightly lost, dazed eyes.

“Y-yes?”

Vlad gazed down at Danny.  Gently, he wrapped his hands around the boy’s waist and raised him up out of the water; Danny gasped sharply at the cool air against his skin, hands sinking into his long silver hair, then breathed out slowly as Vlad wrapped his legs around his waist and slowly lowered them both into the water.

“Never doubt that I love you…” Vlad whispered.

Lidded blue eyes met Vlad’s as the boy nodded, body shivering as they sunk deeper into the water, as more of his bare skin slid against the general’s bare skin.  It was so intimate, just a meeting of flesh pressed against flesh, but under the moonlight, in this private oasis, Danny had never felt more wanted… More loved…

“Never…”  he breathed, and then leaned down to press his lips against Vlad’s, eyes slipping shut.

Vlad sucked in a breath.  He moaned softly and moved closer to deepen the kiss; his hand slipped down between them, stroking the prince in a now familiar motion.  Danny sighed in pleasure… opening his mouth.  Vlad eagerly accepted the invitation and quickened his pace.  

Danny squirmed and writhed in Vlad’s hold, hips bucking up to meet his hand with every stroke.  Finally, after moaning so obscenely around Vlad’s tongue, he finally had to pull back with a loud gasp, head tilted back as he panted for air.  He couldn’t stop how his back arched or how his body responded so eagerly to Vlad’s touch.  All he could do was moan and shake and call out the general’s name, holding on for dear life as he fondled him harsher and faster.

“AH!  V-Vlad!  S-slow d-d-down, oooh!”

Vlad moved to Danny’s neck and shoulder, placing open-mouthed kisses on the boy’s soft flesh.  He felt that the prince would forgive him for disobeying that order.

Danny’s plush mouth fell open in a silent cry, head falling back as his hips hitched and he felt his balls draw tight.  “Oh!  Oh!!  W-w-wait, p-please, I–!! AHH!!”

The general felt the prince’s young cock spurt and go soft under his fingers.  He glanced down for a moment – watching the milky liquid disperse – and then panted harshly.  

Vlad put his hand in Danny’s hair and brought his head down for a rough kiss, not easing up on his stroking.

The poor boy fussed and squirmed in Vlad’s hold, sensitive from his sudden orgasm.  But he couldn’t escape the man’s strong grip and finally he went limp with a submissive moan, whining into the kiss.  He parted his lips wider, let Vlad do whatever he wanted with his lips and teeth and tongue.  

Danny’s head spun wildly as he felt himself begin to get hard again, making his thighs twitch and his breath come out all the faster.

“Do you know…” Vlad breathed, gazing down at him, “what I’m going to do to you…?”

The little prince trembled, whimpering.  He shook his head meekly, glazed blue eyes locked with Vlad’s own.

Gentle hands slid under the water, squeezing Danny’s clenched rear.  “I will open you…” Vlad murmured.  “It might be painful.  But you have to relax… for me.”

Danny whimpered, but nodded, looking up at him with adoring, trusting eyes.  

“For you…”  he breathed.  He reached up and sought Vlad’s lips again, desperately kissing him as he tried so hard to relax, to soften up for his general.  But it was so hard!  He was so wanting, so worked up!  He mewled and arched against Vlad’s touch, hips brushing up against his and making him moan as he felt something hard and LARGE brush his backside.  And for a moment, that only caused him to bristle and tighten up even more…

But then he realised… Vlad was HARD for him!  So hard and just as wanting as the needy little prince!  It was almost mind boggling…

Finally, he managed to will himself to slow down, to let the heat of the spring seep into his muscles, into his very bones.  His kiss turned languid and his hips slowed their movements.  A warm, sleepy kind of pleasure took over, letting him go limp in Vlad’s arms as he just ENJOYED being held and stroked and loved…

A finger pushed through the water… and pressed against Danny’s entrance.

The boy stiffened, plush mouth falling open.  “Ah…!”

“Shhhh…”  Vlad crooned reassuringly into the prince’s ear, slowly but surely pushing his finger up past the first ring of muscle.  Danny bit his lip in discomfort as the general curled it inside him.  

“Nnn… Vlad…!” he hissed.  “That… ow…”

“Just wait…” the general whispered, pressing a hand down on Danny’s lower back.  He licked his lips and looked down over the prince’s shoulder… watching his ass twitch and clench just under the surface of the water.  His warm walls – burning in the wash of the hot spring – were squeezing so hard around his fingers…

Danny tried to let himself relax, panting into Vlad’s bare chest.  He could feel himself stretching, like the pull of silk strings.  It hurt in the strangest way… but he didn’t ask Vlad to stop.

He was a soldier.  He could do this…

After a few long minutes, Danny felt the pain fading away, replaced with a wide stretch around Vlad’s thick fingers.  He moaned – mouth wide, eyes slipping shut again – as he pressed down on them… craving more.

“Oh… OH… Vlad… again, again…” he breathed.  He grabbed Vlad’s wrist.  “More… please– AH!”

Another thick finger pressed inside, and the pain flared up again.  Danny hissed and groaned, trembling as he collapsed against Vlad’s fingers; it hurt, but now he knew what it would feel like AFTER and oh gods… he wanted to be opened, wide and GAPING…

Vlad panted into Danny’s ear and pushed in.

“AH!  Faster…!” the boy begged, even as his voice was constricted with pain.

“Not yet…!” Vlad whispered.  His big, hard cock twitched under the water angrily; that burning, textured pressure, wet and squeezing around his finger, he could barely restrain himself…!  “I don’t want to hurt you…!”

Danny groaned in protest, but he knew Vlad was right.  He was still in slight pain even now from the preparation with only warm water to ease the way.  He clenched his eyes shut, dropping his forehead against Vlad’s chest as he breathed through it, trying to will himself to relax, to open up!

He gasped loudly as something seemed to finally give within him, loosen and stretch and just open up around Vlad’s fingers.  He moaned as he felt his inner muscles flutter and clench, but this time out of pleasure instead of pain.  He sighed, legs going limp as he instinctively pressed his hips back against those thick fingers, seeking more.

There was like a strange itch, deep inside, and Danny didn’t know what it was but the moving, stretching fingers seemed give some semblance of relief.  “More… please… d-deeper…”

He tilted his head back, mouth hung open and tongue peeking out to slide across plump, red lips.  His eyes were darkened and glazed over in lust, pain completely slipping away from his body to be replaced with warm pleasure.  His little hole mouthed and spasmed around Vlad’s fingers, in tune with Danny’s mewls.  “P-Please… deeper… I n-need it…”

Vlad moaned and pushed in his third digit.  The prince gasped harshly, immediately pressing down despite the pain.  “Deep…er…”

Danny squeezed around him… and the general felt something give.

Gasping desperately, Vlad took his fingers out of the young man and found his own cock – hard and hot and pulsing angrily – and pressed the head into Danny’s mouthing, open ass.  

The prince dug his nails into Vlad’s shoulders, eyes going round as he felt the hard, hot tip kiss the sensitive skin.  He trembled and cried out, feeling the older man grip his round ass cheeks and SPREAD them.

His eyes rolled back in his head as warm water slipped just slightly into his open passage, making his hips twitch and his moans grow louder in pitch.

“P-please!”  he begged, pressing back weakly against the general’s large erection, wanting it so desperately.  “PLEASE!”

Vlad’s mind spun.  He could stand at the bottom of the lake, but he didn’t want that shallow angle – he wanted to thrust deep in his prince.  He wanted to mark him so far inside that Danny would feel it days from now.  He wanted to make them see STARS.

Breathing hard, the general sheathed himself fully inside Danny.  The prince’s eyes rolled back in his head, crying out obscenely; Vlad attacked his throat, running his tongue desperately over Danny’s skin as he felt his way over to a large, smooth boulder.  “Wha– AH!” a startled cry left Danny’s throat as he pressed the prince’s back into it, raising him up out of the water.  

Clear and milky drops streamed down the red, inflamed skin of Vlad’s balls – pressing harshly against Danny’s fluttering ass.  

The general spread Danny’s thighs wide, met his wide, dusky eyes, and thrust in.

The smack of flesh on flesh echoed around the spring.

“VLAAAD!!”  Danny wailed, head thrashing from side to side as his lover brutally laid into him.  The man’s patience had snapped, and now Danny was left with the lustful, primal core of him…

And the thought only made his lower belly clench and flutter, his ass to squeeze even tighter. Unimaginable want sang through his veins and he allowed himself to go limp, to let Vlad stretch him out wide and open, to let him sink further and further into his plush bottom, reaching places he had never–

“A-AHHH!!”  he screamed, eyes snapping open wide and back arching against the stone in an attempt to press his ass flush with Vlad’s pelvis.  A shock of pleasure so strong it was almost painful hit him right in the gut, just when Vlad had thrust in hard, bottoming out so deeply.  The poor boy wailed and mewled in confusion as it happened again, this time more surely with a vicious plunge.  “AH!!  Oh, oh oh OH!! Wh-what IS that–AHHHH!!”

Vlad grabbed Danny’s knees and raised them up to the boy’s chest, his cock curving down into him to strike at the hot, pulsating core of his prince.  Danny’s nails bit into his shoulders, eyes rolling back into his head again as he screamed shapelessly.  He could feel the boy trying and failing to press down harder on Vlad; the general had all the leverage and it was driving him INSANE.

Vlad felt himself getting close, but he wasn’t done.  He pulled out of Danny – his agitated, reddened tip pressing tight against the cold rock – and picked him up again.

The little prince could do nothing except mewl in distress as his hole was bared to the cool air, gapping wide and mouthing at nothing.  He clung to Vlad with his trembling hands, even though the rest of him went loose and malleable like a doll.  He couldn’t feel his legs anymore, and they just hung there in Vlad’s arms as the man carried him to who knows where.  

He looked up at him with lidded, dazed eyes, so terribly lost and confused and so NEEDY.  “V-V-Vlad?  Hah… Ahnn….”

Vlad carried them to the shore, putting Danny down belly-first in the slick sand.  He raised the prince’s hips, arched his back up, and pressed his swollen cock back inside Danny with a slow, heated squelch – rubbing right into his sweet spot.  The sound the boy made was inhuman, bucking back towards him.  Vlad grabbed his hips again, pulled out, and smacked in, hard and fast as he felt his orgasm looming over them both.  His balls tightened, his thrusts getting harsh and erratic–!

“V-VLAD!!”

It was those harsh, brutal thrusts against that spot inside him that had Danny spilling into the sands, screaming and sobbing as he suffered through a violent orgasm like he had never experienced.  Pleasure blinded him and he slumped into the sand, panting and dazed as he slowly came down from his high, twitching with the aftershocks of post-orgasm.  He suddenly seized and gasped as his inner muscles clenched and spasmed tight around Vlad’s still thrusting cock, stimulating a dry, second orgasm out of the poor prince.  

The boy hiccuped and moaned as he felt Vlad slam into him one last time and hold fast, a deep guttural sound leaving the man’s chest as he spilled so deep inside of him.  Danny moaned along with him as he felt so much of the hot, thick gushes of the general’s cum sink deep inside him, marking him up forever as Vlad’s and Vlad’s alone.  

He sighed in contentment, canting his hips up as best he could to press back snug against Vlad, hoping to keep him and his large amount of seed inside for as long as he possibly could…

The general sighed and leaned down, pressing a kiss into Danny’s back.  “Are you alright?” he murmured, voice low and rumbling in his chest.

Danny nodded slowly, almost in a sleepy fashion as all his limbs turned sluggish, muscles warm and lethargic and his bones like jelly.  He nuzzled against the sand, cheek stained red and drool spilling from his plush lips.

“Y-yeah…”  he murmured, voice hushed and abused.  “I… I feel… good… so good…”

Danny was clearly still high on pleasure as he wiggled his plush little ass closer, pressing it nice and tight against Vlad’s pelvis.  He hummed in the back of his throat as he slowly clenched and unclenched his insides around Vlad’s slowly softening cock, murmuring out loud in sleepy pleasure about how GOOD the man felt inside him, warm and thick and so, so wet…

Vlad chuckled and pulled Danny’s radiant white hair away from his neck, kissing that as well.  “We should get back,” he whispered.

Danny scrunched his nose, shaking his head slightly with an unhappy sound.  “But… we’ll have to get clean… you’ll have to pull out…”

He reached back blindly for him, trying to sit up while still pressing back against him.  “I don’t want to… I want you to stay, right there…”

He glanced over his shoulder at the general, blue eyes lidded and dark.  “Where you belong…”

Vlad gazed softly at his emperor-to-be, placing gentle kisses along his shoulders.  “I know, your majesty, I know…” he told him.  “But after our wedding, I will stay as long as you wish…”

“Do you promise…?”

Vlad took Danny’s hand and placed it over his heart.  “I swear on my honor…” he promised, serious as the grave.

Danny looked into his eyes for a long time, finding nothing but the truth there.  The boy sighed, and finally nodded his agreement.  He whimpered softly as Vlad slowly pulled out, leaving a red, swollen and gaping wet hole behind.  He clung to Vlad’s arm, looking up at him with a playful pout.  

“Well, my future husband, I do believe you have made a big mess of me…”

“You don’t know that, you can’t see it~” the man replied playfully.

“I can FEEL it,”  Danny snapped back, chuckling.  “Oh gods… how am I going to ride tomorrow?  You’ve ruined me~!”

The boy startled suddenly, a tickling sensation causing him to glance down just in time to see a thick stream of white slip down the back of his inner thighs.  He blushed scarlet, quickly looking away.  “You um… uh…  a… a lot…”

Vlad turned a little red as well.  “Oh, ah…”

He glanced down, smirked the slightest bit, then helped Danny up.  “Indeed I did,” he murmured, keeping his eyes humbly fixed on the ground.  That view would be all his once they were married; he could hold off for now.  “Let’s get you cleaned up…”

“I don’t know how you will manage to do that…”  the prince murmured, stumbling towards the hot spring after Vlad.  “It’s so deep… I’m gonna be leaking all day tomorrow!”

The general barely held back a rather undignified snort.  “Your majesty, you can’t talk like that…” he smirked.  “It’s inappropriate.”

“Oh, please!”  Danny cackled, slipping into the water.  “We have LONG since passed inappropriate the moment you not only slid inside me, but left a bit of yourself up there as well!”

The boy stuttered to a stop, flushing bright red.  “Oh no, I’m turning into my cousin…”

He glanced back up at Vlad, biting his lip a little more demurely.  “S-sorry, for the language, I just… um…”

Vlad couldn’t hold it in anymore.  His laughter rang loudly throughout the clearing.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Danny had been right about not being able to ride too well the next day.  He claimed he must have slept on a rock and due to his now bruised back, so he sat side saddle in front of Vlad for that day’s journey.  He and Vlad agreed it would be best to hold off from sex until after the wedding, as would be proper, so the next night Vlad simply held Danny close as they slept in the same cot, listening to each other’s heartbeat.  On the third day, Danny felt much better, glad to see that was actually a bit of a quick recovery, even though he swore to Vlad his little bum was STILL stretched pretty wide.  The man didn’t believe him of course, claimed he was exaggerating, but Danny figure he would just have to show him when they had some private time alone… maybe.

It was on the fourth day that they finally reached the city.  Danny covered himself up from head to toe, using Vlad’s own red cape to cover his head, face and shoulders.  Everyone believed the prince was dead and Danny didn’t want to cause the people alarm.  Or spread even MORE rumors about him being a ghost.  

It was midday when they reached the palace, and Danny was already beginning to feel that cloying, claustrophobic sensation he had always had here, since he was a child.  It was so much worse, now that he had been out in the world.  

He supposed he would have to find a way to fix that.

He stayed behind Vlad as they walked through the halls, keeping his head down until they finally reached the emperor’s private meeting chambers.  The emperor only had a couple of his advisors and council members with him when they entered and Danny breathed a sigh of relief as the commander asked the doors and windows be sealed.  He may not particularly like some of these advisors, but at least they knew to keep silent…

That’s when Danny stepped out from behind the general, raised his head high… and removed the cape.

“Prince Danwei!” someone exclaimed.

That was all that advisor had time to say before Emperor Clockwork waved a hand, silencing him.

Danny stepped forward after handing Vlad his cape back, leaving his head and shoulders more bare than they had ever been in the palace before.  He locked eyes with the emperor… and smiled.

“Hello, grandfather.”

Clockwork raised his head, his crinkled black eyes twinkling in amusement.  He stroked his long white beard down over fine red, gold, and purple silk robes, his royal beaded hat clinking in the silence, and stood regally from his golden throne.  “Hello, grandson,” he smiled.

There was a moment of silence, before Danny suddenly dashed forward, crossing the room quickly and all but tackling the emperor in a hug.  He sighed shakily, holding on tight.  “I’ve missed you…”

Clockwork smiled softly, gently patting his grandson’s back.  “And I you…”

Vlad smiled, releasing a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding.  Behind him, an advisor leaned over to another.  “Is he allowed to do that?” he whispered.

Vlad shot a glare at both of them.  They fell silent.

Danny finally pulled back, beaming up at his grandfather with a slightly sheepish expression.  “I hope I didn’t worry you too much!  But it wasn’t safe for me to come back after the huns learned who I was, so I ran to the safest place I could think of!”

He turned back to smile at Vlad and his fellow soldiers.  “General Master’s army.”

He turned back to the emperor, expression a little more somber.  “I know I shouldn’t have, but I tricked the general into letting me join the army.  I wanted to learn, I wanted to get stronger, help our country…”  he ducked his head.  “I’m sorry, I have probably caused you a lot of trouble…”

Clockwork smiled knowingly, glancing up.  “Is this true, General Vladimir?”

Vlad nodded.  “Yes, your eminence, it is.”

The emperor nodded slowly, then looked down at his grandson, rubbed his hair affectionately, and had him stand to the side.  

Danny watched as his grandfather walked over to Vlad; the general sank to one knee as he approached.  The prince bit his lip nervously, a part of him wanting to rush forward and be there with his love, but he remained where he was…

Clockwork stopped before Vlad, steepling his fingers in front of his chest.  “General, when I rescued you on the side of the road all those years ago, I would never have assumed such a series of events would come to pass,” he declared.  “You have dishonored your position by looking upon my grandson, you failed to inform me as soon as you knew Danwei was alive, and worst of your crimes, you knowingly put a prince of China in danger.”

Vlad kept his head lowered.  Danny swallowed, glancing at the severe expressions of the other advisors.

“However.”

The prince perked up as Clockwork smirked down at his loyal servant.  “He has blossomed under your tutelage,” the emperor told him.  “He is brave now.  Confident.  A leader.”

“He has always had it in him, your eminence,” Vlad replied.

Clockwork smiled back at Danny.  “I agree, general.”

Danny smiled, even causing the few advisors in the room to blink at him in shock at how beautiful he suddenly looked like that.  Blue eyes bright and glittering, white hair long and loose around his pale face…

But the prince paid the shocked council members no mind as he came down to stand beside his grandfather before the general and the other kneeling soldiers.  “May I introduce you to my friends, grandfather?”

He beamed as the older man smiled and nodded, waving a hand to allow the men to stand before him once more.  Danny stepped over to Tucker, smiling at him kindly before facing his grandfather.  “Tuck is one of the last survivors of the fallen Fong Wen village.  I request that he be placed among our stables.  The rebuilding of Fong Wen will take time, and I want Tucker involved.  He is skilled with horses, so he will be a great asset to us to place him in a position where he can hone and teach his skills.”

He smiled at Tucker’s dumbfounded expression before moving on to the next soldier.  “Kwan has been taken out of active duty for breaking out of formation.  However, he did so to protect me, which he has done so marvellously.  I wish to make it known that I intend to make him my personal bodyguard.”

Kwan’s jaw dropped as he stared wide eyed at Danny.  The little prince chuckled, placing a finger under the man’s chin and snapping it shut.  He then turned to the blonde man at the end, who had his head down slightly, waiting judgement.  Danny frowned at his demeanor.  “Dash… is currently facing punishment under General Vladimir for breaking formation and rash judgement.  But again, he did so to protect me AND by following my command.  As a reward for his bravery, I have spoken to Vladimir and we have come to an agreement.”

Dash looked up, a little startled.  An agreement?

“Dash will face whatever punishment Vladimir sees fit… but once his probation period is over, he will retake his position in the army under the general’s command… as his new third rank officer.”  Danny smiled, laughing as the blonde looked ready to faint.  “He will begin training immediately as both the general and I have high hopes for him.”

He turned back to his grandfather, smiling.  “Each of these three men befriended me and aided me BEFORE they ever knew who I was.  I was simply another soldier, a troop brother, and they treated me kindly.  Their loyalty to me, as the Prince of China, is not one out of blind faith… but out of friendship and trust.  I would not be here today, alive and well and grown, if not for each of these men.”

Tucker turned pink, smiling like an idiot.  Kwan still looked a little shell-shocked.  Dash looked like he had swallowed a whole hot pepper and was trying not to cough.

Emperor Clockwork looked over the three, eyeing them sceptically down his nose.

Then, the old man nodded and looked back at Danny.  “I trust your judgement, Danwei.”

He waved a hand to the council and the scribes.  “Put it on the record!  Make it so.”

Danny smiled brightly as the scribes rushed to do as he said, but frowned slightly as one particular advisor, whom he had not realised was there, came forward.  The stout man had always seemed to look down on Danwei, no matter what the prince had or had not done.  

He was also the one pushing the emperor the hardest to marry him off.  The bastard.

“Your eminence, it is marvelous that the prince is…”  the man sneered slightly as he smiled.  “Alive, and well.  But surely it is too soon to let him begin taking such responsibilities on his own.  Besides, he has just past his seventeenth birthday and is well of age.  We need to begin finding him a suitable… spouse.”

Danny glared slightly at the advisor, forcing himself not to just reach forward and throttle him.  

The man seemed to smirk at him with his one good eye, the other gone blind and glassy due to old age and sickness.  “The prince seems to be more then ready to begin taking on new duties.  Surely he understands the importance of finding himself a suitable empress… or emperor, rather, to… HELP, with the new burdens he will be facing~?”

Vlad bristled at those words and turned to snap at the man, but the emperor interrupted.  “I could not agree more,” Clockwork said reasonably.

“Your eminence…!”

Clockwork raised his eyebrows delicately at Vlad.  “Is there something you would like to say to me, General Vladimir?” he asked quietly.

The man fell silent for a moment – casting a fleeting glance at Danny.  The prince’s eyes widened slightly, BEGGING the man to speak up.  If he didn’t do this know, they would never have another chance before the advisors whisked him away to whatever man or woman they had planned!

//Please…// he pleaded with his bright, frightened eyes.  //Ask for me… ask for me!//

Vlad looked away from Danny, taking a deep breath as he looked into the all-knowing eyes of the emperor.  “Your eminence…?” he asked quietly, quickly glancing back at the floor… then, his brows furrowed.  

After a moment of hesitation, Vlad looked right into the face of the most powerful man in China.  “I wish to ask for Danwei’s hand in marriage!” he announced, for the whole chamber to hear.

Danny released a sigh of relief he had not realised he was holding, smiling widely.  The advisor beside him seemed to recoil in shock, his one good eye wide as he stared between the emperor and the general.  “Wh-what?  But, surely not–!”

Another advisor piped up.  “A foreigner with no noble blood could not possibly be our emperor, it is simply not done!”

Vlad shot a blood-chilling glare at the two of them.  “Then DANWEI will be Emperor!” he snarled, looking like he was ready to throttle them both.  “And I will be HIS consort!  The royal family has had enough of you MEDDLING in THEIR affairs–!”

“ENOUGH!!”

The room fell into shocked silence as Danny came forward to stand before Vlad.  The man moved to kneel again, but Danny raised a hand to stop him, face nearly expressionless.  He turned to look at the emperor.  “Grandfather.  This man has always sought my safety and happiness above all else.  He has served you and this country with his blood and tears and I would be honored to call him my husband, and MY emperor!  So, please!”

He reached forward and took Vladimir’s hand, raising his head high.  “Will you bless this union?”

Clockwork gazed at his grandson… and then at his general.

“…You two shall face many obstacles.”

Danny chuckled breathlessly.  “Something tells me they will be far easier than facing down a horde of huns in an avalanche…”

His grandfather laughed quietly.  “And you are ready to face them together?” he asked.

Vlad nodded, his face grim as he interlaced their fingers.  “Always, Emperor.”

Clockwork nodded.  “In that case…”

His twinkling black eyes glanced mischievously at his general.  “It was about time you came around, Vladimir~”

Vlad stared at the emperor.  “What?  I–”

Danny sputtered, face flushing slightly in mortification.  “Grandfather!”

“I was waiting for him to grow a romantic fondness for you since you were fourteen.  Forgive me if I was impatient.”

The prince hid his flustered face behind the large sleeve of his robe, avoiding Vlad’s shocked eyes.  “You… for that long?” the general whispered.

“I TOLD you I had a crush on you…”  Danny stuttered, turning to give his grandfather a foul look.  “And really, you encouraged all this??  How could you possibly know he would develop any feelings for me?  It’s not like anyone had before!  I mean…”  he sighed, shaking his head.  “How did you know?”

Clockwork’s eyes twinkled.  “Oh, I know everything.”

He raised his voice, turning back to his council.  “Spread the word that tonight, we shall host a grand party for the heroes of China!” he announced.  “It is there that I shall announce the betrothal of the royal Prince Danwei.  While you’re at it, schedule his coronation for next month.”

Danny’s eyes flew wide and Vlad had to actually catch him as his knees gave out from under him.  He turned to blink shocked eyes up at the general, almost unable to believe it.  “Next month!”  he exclaimed.  “A coronation… a WEDDING!”

The boy was practically vibrating with how happy and utterly shocked he was, clinging to Vlad like a lifeline.  “We’re… we’re getting married!!”

Vlad beamed, wrapping his arms around his beautiful fiance.  “Thank you, your eminence…” he whispered to the emperor.

“It is only the least you deserve, my lad,” Clockwork murmured back, placing a gnarled, but gentle hand on Vlad’s shoulder.  “I have always considered you a member of my family.  I am glad the day shall soon be here that you truly are.”

“Thank you…” Vlad repeated.  He held Danny closer, eyes full to the brim.  “Thank you…”

“She would be happy for you, you know…”

The general stiffened for an instant at the emperor’s words – tearing his eyes away from his fiance’s beauty and staring up at Clockwork.  Anger, a quiet bitterness, resignation, all flickered in his dark eyes, struggling to understand why.  “Despite what you once thought, she never would have wanted you to be alone, Vladimir…” Clockwork murmured.  

His timeless black eyes glinted soberly.  “She always wanted you to be happy.”

For a long, long moment, the silver-haired man searched his face and his own heart… for regret, for hesitation, for everything that had kept him from pursuing his own happiness.  It had been so long since he had loved, and now…

“Vlad?”

The man blinked and glanced down into Danny’s worried blue eyes.  He looked at the boy’s face, his eyes, his mouth… and finally figured it out.  Here was his answer.  Here was his happiness.  Here was his everything.

Vlad leaned down, pressing a kiss into Danny’s hair.  “I’m alright, little phantom…” he whispered.  “Don’t you worry.”

Danny furrowed his brows at the man, but sighed happily and leaned against him.  “Alright…”

The emperor glided back to his throne and sat, surveying the room with his old, wrinkled face twisted up in a merry expression.  “Of course, with your wedding coming up, we shall have to invite your cousins to the announcement!” he croaked happily.  “Shall I send for them?  I’m sure they would be absolutely delighted to see you, Prince Danwei~”

Danny beamed, nodding excitedly.  “Oh, yes!  It has been so long since I’ve seen them…”

His smile turned sheepish and he ducked his head a little.  “I’m sure they will be eager to chew me out for my reckless behavior…”

A messenger was sent after that, inviting Danny’s cousins and other members of the royal court and council to dine with the Emperor that night, before he gave an announcement to the public.  It was a night of celebration all through China, as news of the huns’ defeat spread far and wide, along with the buzzing rumor that the Emperor had something else special to share!  Danny, meanwhile, was whisked away from Vlad and his friends to get cleaned up and changed.  He was a little upset at being separated from his lover, but took solace in the fact that they were all being sent to their own rooms for a scrub down as well.  Danny was quiet as he bathed, releasing a relaxed sigh as a servant washed his hair with fragrant oils that made it soft and shiny.  Finally, he was dried and led back to his old chambers.  When he saw the black robes on the bed, he frowned.

“No…”

“Y-your majesty?”

Danny glanced at one of the nervous servants, and smiled.  These few servants had always been with him.  From what he knew, they had actually been his mother’s hand maidens, and he was thankful for their silent kindness everyday.

“Tonight is a very special night.  I think it’s time I did away with these somber robes, and wear something more… festive!”

His smile widened at their shocked expression.  “Please, could you find me something more colorful?  Purple, or blue perhaps?  I’ve always liked that color…”

The servants conversed with each other quickly, trying to figure out where they would find something like he described that would also fit him.  Suddenly, one of the older servants perked up, having an idea.  “Your majesty?  How would you feel about wearing something of your mother’s?”

Danny’s eyes widened.  “My… my mother?”

“Yes!  We still have many of her things locked away in the palace, along with her wardrobe.  I believe there might be something there she hadn’t even worn yet!  Shall I look for you?”

“You… you would do that for me?”  Danny breathed, then smiled beautifully.  “Yes!  Yes, please!”

The servant instructed the others to start combing the prince’s hair and getting him ready, she would be back soon.  So Danny sat at the vanity impatiently, trying his best to remain still while the others trimmed his nails and combed his hair.  A few minutes later, and the servant returned.  

The prince was absolutely speechless.  In her hands was a beautiful set of dress robes in so many different shades of blue, he just couldn’t name them all.  It was clean and embroidered in precious silvers and jewels, the multiple layers of silk seeming to float on air as she carried it towards him.  

“Will this do, your majesty?”

“…Yes.  Yes, it’s perfect,”  Danny breathed.  “She… she never got to wear this?”

The servant smiled sadly.  “It was made for her to wear when she announced your birth… It was made, for a very special occasion.  She would WANT you to wear it…”

Danny fell silent as the dressed him, pulling the sashes tight around his thin waist, sewing and folding, until the robes fit him.  They pulled up some of his long white hair in the back, and held it in place with a fine toothed comb, decorated in crystal water lilies.  He hardly recognised himself when he looked in the mirror.

“You’re as beautiful as your mother…”  one servant whispered, smoothing out the long silk shawls he had draped around his arms.  “You look just like a TRUE spirit prince, just like in the fairy tales… the people will love you…”

He turned to look at them, eyes wide.  “You… you think so?”

“Of course!  Just you wait and see, your majesty.  Now come along, it’s time for you to rejoin the Emperor.”

The walk back to banquet hall was both too long and too short for Danny.  The servants left him at the double doors, and he could hear his name being announced to the room.  Everyone must have arrived by now…

The doors swung open, and Danny took in a deep breath.  He straightened up, held his head high, and glided quietly into the room.  

Inside the grand banquet hall, hundreds of people were sipping tea and light spirits, dressed like elegant peacocks, and their heads turned as he entered – light from the many lanterns glittering off the crystal flowers in his comb.  Whispers erupted at the sight of his pale hair… but, eventually, they actually went silent; Danny arched his back regally and took his place beside his grandfather and cousins.

Jazmine kept her blue eyes down, but smiled as he stopped beside her.  “I’ll be sure to chew you out later,” she whispered, demure for the sake of appearances.

Danny smiled down at his lap, gently folding his hands over the long silk sleeves.  “I had no doubt that you would~”

“Will you tell us?”  came a gentle whisper over Jazz’s shoulder, Lin’s soft tones reaching him through the quiet.  “Will you tell us what it was like out there?”

“Of course, later.”

Danny could feel hundreds of eyes on him, but there was only one set he actually dared to seek out.  When his blue eyes landed on the dark ones of his general, he couldn’t help but send him a sweet, tiny smile.  Oh, his love looked so handsome tonight… yet so nervous, bedecked all in red and gold for good luck – which the man no doubt thought he needed plenty of – with his long silver hair held up in a golden clip, wrought to look like a dragon ready to strike.  Vlad’s fingers drummed anxiously at the hilt of his sword… then he spotted Danny gazing at him.  He smiled back gently, admiring the prince’s beauty…

The small feast seemed to last forever, and Danny soon longed for the night to end.  He wanted the announcement to be made, wanted it known that his hand now belonged to Vladimir…

And he wanted to be able to sneak away to his chambers tonight… to be held and kissed…  But such things were improper for the young prince in the palace, and he sighed longingly.

//This is going to be a long month…//

Finally, as the last of the dishes was cleared away, Emperor Clockwork stood up from his throne.  Everyone fell silent as he slowly took a step down the dais, and then turned to take young Danwei’s hand.  There were a few murmurs from the crowd as Danny stood up beside the Emperor, and even the princesses looked confused as to what was transpiring.  The Emperor lead Danny to stand before the room full of nobles and dignitaries, not too far from the large balcony that he would soon be stepping out on to greet the public.

Clockwork raised a hand for silence, and the room went quiet.  

There was a moment of silence… and then the emperor spoke.

“Honored guests,” Clockwork greeted, his old, creaky voice warm despite his rather cool demeanor.  “Thank you for coming here tonight, for song and for good food… and for good news.”

He waved a hand to Danny.  “You have all met my grandson, Danwei, the son of my late daughter.  He has been in recluse until recently – most of his life, in fact.  However, during this time he has studied the ways of the palace, of ruling, of diplomacy and social tactics.  I am growing old, it is certainly no secret~”

The audience chuckled; Clockwork waved dismissively.  “It is time that I announced my heir.”

He turned to Danny.  “And I am proud to say, it is this boy who – in one month’s time – shall be your new Emperor.”

“If the boy lives that long~”


	15. Chapter Fifteen

_"If the boy lives that long~"_

 

Danny whirled around at the sound of that dark, familiar voice, eyes wide in shock and fear.

//No, it couldn’t be…!//

Screams erupted throughout the hall as Pariah Dark himself stepped from the shadows.  A malicious grin spread across his face as he looked down upon Danwei and the Emperor, a wicked gleam in his one good eye.  

“Two for the price of one…” Pariah growled.  “How generous.”

He reached forward to grab Clockwork, but Danny leapt forward and pushed his grandfather away and down the dais, towards the approaching guards and soldiers.  “No-- AHH!”  

Pariah wrapped an arm like steel around his middle, pulling him up into the air and pressing him his back to the man’s scarred chest.  The boy screamed and raged, but Pariah only laughed.  “Did you think I honestly cared about that old FOOL?”  he growled, holding Danwei tighter as the boy struggled.  “It’s you I want, CHILD…”

Danny had a moment to look up, meeting the horrified face of his lover, just before Pariah dashed from the room and up the stairs towards the balconies.

Vlad shot up from his chair, hand flying his sword.  But before he could draw it, two men grabbed him -- shoving the blade back into its sheath -- and struck him over the head.  A white starburst of pain erupted in his temple.  Everything flickered black; he fell, the raucous laughter of the huns echoing around the room.  Danny’s eyes widened as a handful of Pariah’s troops leapt from the shadows, bolting the door behind them shut and guarding it.  Color drained from his face as he realised, once again…

He was alone with the king of the huns… and this time, unarmed.

Pariah tromped down the hall, his triumphant laugh booming throughout the palace.  “Life is certainly BETTER with SURPRISES…” he growled.  Danny gasped and struggled -- but was unable to break free from the hun’s iron grip as he was carried out onto the balcony for all of China to see.

One of Pariah’s monstrous hands grabbed Danny by the scruff of the neck and raised him above his head like he was nothing more than a doll.  

“BEHOLD!!” the king of the huns bellowed, grinning at the gasps and cries of horror from the crowd below.  “YOUR FUTURE EMPEROR!!”

Danny quailed and kicked, trembling in Pariah’s grip.  This couldn’t be happening…!

 

~*~*~

“This can’t be HAPPENING!”

Sam paced furiously within the Emperor’s room, where she, Jazmine and Lin, had fled when the huns attacked.  “That PIG!  How dare he come into our house a SECOND TIME!”

Lin suddenly shushed her black-clad sister, cradling Vlad’s head in her lap.  “Hush!  He’s waking up…”

Everyone went silent as they watched the general struggle to blink his eyes open.  He looked up the three girls staring down at him in concern, his brows furrowing for a moment… Only for them to widen as realization hit him.  Vlad sat up quickly and sagged, groaning.  The man grabbed his head; Jazz placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him.  “Easy now, general… you were hit pretty hard…”

Vlad sucked in a breath through his teeth, wincing at the piercing pain in his skull.  “How long have I been out?” he asked urgently.  “What happened?  Where’s Danwei?!”

“It’s only been a few minutes really,”  Sam muttered glaring at the guarded door.  “We just relocated here…  As for Danny…”

“The prince is with Pariah!”  Lin whispered, looking like she was about to cry.  “He took him out on the balcony and barricaded the doors!”

Jazz watched as Sam resumed her pacing, brows furrowed in concern.  “He went for him instead of the emperor… why?  What does he want with Danny?  Revenge?  Or is this some sort of dominance play?”

“What does it MATTER??”  Sam snapped.  “He has our baby cousin!”

Vlad grimaced and sat up.  “Where’s Emperor Clockwork...?”

“He went off in another direction, said he was going to go get help!” Lin panicked, fingers worrying at the hem of her dress.  “But we didn’t get the chance to ask why and--!”

Knock knock knock.

“Um, excuse me…?” came a humble voice, muffled through the door.  “Is anyone in there?"

“C’mon, Kwan, if someone IS in there then they sure as hell wouldn’t answer.”

Vlad perked up.  “I know those voices!” he exclaimed.  Before the princesses could agree or try to stop him, the general had jumped to his feet and hurried across the room.  He unbolted the tall red doors, yanked them open, and revealed the trio of young soldiers just beyond it.  “Oh mochi balls, are YOU three a sight for sore eyes!”

Kwan froze, his hand raised in mid-knock.  “Whaaaa…?”

Dash raised an eyebrow.  “Mochi balls?”

Tucker scratched his head.  “I think that’s some kinda foreign dessert--”

“Get in here!”

“WAH!”

The three men tumbled inside, wearing a clean set of armor normally meant for the palace guards, since their own were being repaired.  All three turned to question Vlad about what in the world was going on, only to freeze at the sight of the princesses.  “Y-your majesties!”  Tucker stuttered, quickly bowing along with the other two boys, face pink.  “So sorry to just barge in unannounced!”

Lin giggled, using the sleeve of her dress to cover the lower half of her face while her lashes fluttered coyly.  “Oh, you are very polite~  I think all can be forgiven under the circumstances~”

“Oh, you mean like the sudden appearance of one Pariah Dark in the palace?”  Sam snapped, eyeing the larger soldier curiously.  “Yes, I think that could be called a CIRCUMSTANCE.”

“Enough chatter!” Vlad ordered.  He glared at the soldiers.  “You can flirt later.  Right now, Danwei has been taken hostage!  We need to rescue him and destroy that tyrannical hun king once and for all!”

He glanced at Jazmine, the eldest and smartest of the three princesses.  “You and Dash figure out a way to get past the huns.  I’m giving you command of the rest.”

The soldiers saluted smartly.  “Yes, sir!”

Vlad nodded approvingly, adjusted his sword, and opened the door.  “Good.  I’ll be back soon.”

“Wait, where do you think you’re going?” Sam demanded.

“Danny can’t stay unarmed forever.”

Slam!

Jazz glanced at she soldier she had been partnered with a critical eye.  She looked like she had something scathing to say, but pushed it to the back of her mind.  She had to focus on what was really important.  “The balcony is on the top floor, right behind the banquet hall.  There is only one entrance which is being guarded by huns.  The balcony protrudes out from the side of the palace a fair distance and is quite large, but there is no other way up there, or down.  Also, it is very viewable to the crowds below.”

She folded her arms in her sleeves, a calculated look in her eyes.  “They took the element of surprise to cause panic and disorder, but they haven’t actually engaged in an attack, relying on the people’s fear instead.  They were slow, maybe some are injured or just lacking sleep and food and I only counted half a dozen of them, no more than ten at most.  However, they are cornered and likely gone MAD.  They view this as Pariah’s last chance to claim this city, when in fact, it’s a suicide mission.  Furthermore…”

Jazz frowned, glancing at her cousins.  “When he took Danny, it seemed more… personal…”

Tucker shook his head.  “Trust me, your majesty, it is personal.  WAY too personal, if you kinda… get what I mean.”

Lin and Jazz looked confused, but Sam caught on quickly.  “When they took him from the palace the first time… Pariah..?!”

“Yes…”

“THAT BASTARD!”

“Sam, language!”  Jazz snapped.  

Sam just glared at her.  “I will curse all I want to!  That vile man is NOT laying a hand on my baby cousin!”

“Nobody wants anyone to put a hand on anyone, okay?” Kwan exclaimed.  “But come on, we have to think of some way to get onto that balcony!  There are some big guys guarding that door.”

Minutes ticked by in silence, as they tried to think of a way...

Then, the door clicked open again.  The soldiers and princesses jumped in fear--!

But it was only Vlad.  The general slipped inside -- tucking a bladed fan into the back of his belt -- and turned to the women.  “Well?”

“Uh…”

Slowly, Dash raised his hand.  “I have an idea, sir.  But it’s a bit...”

“I don’t care.  Let’s hear it!”

 

~*~*~

Tucker wriggled uncomfortably in his long kimono.  “Does this dress make me look fat?” he muttered.

“Oh no, red is definitely your color~”  Lin giggled, adjusting his hair.  “Annnd done!”

She and the other girls stepped back to judge their work.  Each soldier, save for Vlad who was guarding the door, was dressed in large, colorful kimonos.  Their faces were painted up like a concubines and the fans they were given would serve to hide the stubble on their chins.  It wasn’t perfect, but it would do.  

“Alright, we got our distraction.”  Sam muttered, straightening out her own dress.  “Ready?”

“Ready!”  Kwan said eagerly, smiling at her.  She raised a brow but didn’t comment, turning back to Vlad.  The general stuck his head out into the hall, waited a few moments, then waved them to follow him.

Tucker tripped a few times on the hem of his dress, but quickly straightened up, fluttering his little fan nervously.  “It is WAY too quiet…”

“There were only a few huns that survived the avalanche.”  Dash explained, voice low.  “They’re all in the banquet hall, guarding Pariah…”

“You think Danny is okay?”  Lin murmured, brows furrowed.  

Kwan gave her a reassuring smiled, nodding.  “He escaped the man before, I’m sure he can do it again!”

“He was armed last time…”  Tucker muttered.

“And he will be again.”

The others blinked at Vladimir, startled by the bloodthirsty look in his eyes.  “If you do this right, he will be again,” the general murmured.  As they approached the grand dining room, he ducked behind the corner, a hand on his sword.  “Move quickly, and signal me when the coast is clear.”

“Yes, sir!”

Inside the grand hall, the huns looked up, alert, when they heard faint, childish giggles.  They raised a brow as three, then three more women came into the room, fluttering their fans and giggling impishly.  One hun rolled his eyes, resheathing his sword.  “Concubines.”

“UGLY concubines…”

Tucker fluttered his lashes and wiggled his fingers at one of the huns, laughing on the inside as the hun blinked at him stupidly, raising a hand to wave back.  The ‘girls’ spread out, easily capturing all of the men’s attention as they smiled and acted coy around them.  

Bump!

One hun looked down in surprise when an apple rolled at his feet.  

Dash grimaced, quickly pulling his kimono a little tighter as one of his ‘breasts’ went rolling away.  After a moment, the hun picked up the apple, offering back to the ‘girl’ who had dropped it…

Only for said girls to grin wickedly, pulling all manner of fruit from within their robes and PELTING it at the guards.  “NOW!”  Dash called as he headbutted one of the huns, sending him crashing down.  He scooped up his fallen sword and ran his opponent through with it.  

Vlad raced out from around the corner, beheading another of his enemies as he reached the doors.  He slammed them open and raced out onto the balcony --

And froze.

“BOW TO ME!!”

Pariah’s fist smashed into Danny’s stomach again.  The prince cried out and fell to the hard stone floor -- curled around his aching ribs -- bruised and battered, his pale blue robes cut and stained with his own blood.  Dark bruises, and bleeding slits in his skin showed through… wounds that were meant to cause pain, not to kill.  Meant to make him stay on the ground.

“You are an insignificant WORM,” Pariah hissed, towering over the shivering boy.  “Dead since you were born!  No one would want you as their servant, let alone their ruler!  STAY!  DOWN!”

The boy shook and trembled, but slowly, oh so slowly… he began to stand up.  Below him, he could hear the gasps and horrified murmurs of the crowd, people crying out in outrage every time Pariah laid a hand on him.  But every time he stood back up, every time he held his head high and DENIED Pariah the one thing he wanted…

The people cheered.

On shaky legs, knees ready to give out at any moment, Danny stood his ground.  He met Pariah’s wrathful gaze with his own cold blue ones.  “No matter how much the wind howls…”

A smirk tickled at the corners of his lips.  “The mountain CANNOT bow to it!”

SMACK!

The prince’s head spun as he was backhanded, but before he could hit the ground his robes were grabbed in Pariah’s large fist.  He was yanked back up and pressed into the balcony rails, a cry of pain escaping him as his bruised sides were pressed against without mercy.

His eyes widened when he felt a large, rough hand rip at his robes, tearing the blue silks with ease.  Dark, maniacal eyes locked with his wide, terrified ones.

“Then I will MAKE you submit to me…”

“OVER MY DEAD BODY!!” Vlad screamed.

He lunged, bringing his sword down over Pariah’s back.  Rage buzzed through his body like a high-octane fuel as the huge hun roared -- blood gushing down his back -- and drew his own sword.  Their blades clashed, sparks grinding off their edges; Pariah towered over Vlad, but both men were driven by agony and fury.  Both of them left openings.  Both of them bled.  

Danny slid to his knees, quaking in fear and pain as he watched his lover fight against Pariah.  He cried out softly as he watched Vlad bleed, the man receiving as much damage as he inflicted.  This couldn’t continue, or he would lose Vlad--!

His eyes darted around for a something, ANYTHING he could use as a weapon.  

His gaze landed on a single, familiar fan, lying on the ground.  How had that gotten there?!  Had Vlad--?!  

Oh, it didn’t matter now!  With a wince, Danny forced himself up to his feet and dashed for it, scooping it up and snapping it open.  He ignored the way his body screamed in pain as he returned his focus to the fight, heart beating fast as a hummingbird’s wings in panic.  Pariah was pushing Vlad towards the corner of the balcony, trapping him in.  The general was losing ground!  In a burst of energy, Danny leapt up onto the balcony rails and RAN along the thin marble towards Pariahs back, ears deaf to the sounds of the people below him calling his name.  He spun his fan in a wide, deadly arc.  He had only one shot at this!

“PARIAH!!”

The hun spun, snarling at the sound of his name.  The spirit prince came sprinting towards him, LEAPING off the rails, the blades of his fan flashing in the lantern light.  His hands were weighed down by his jagged sword, he wouldn’t be able to turn in time to intercept!  Pariah still tried to turn towards Danny, roaring his fury!   Danny felt his fan bite deep into the man’s flesh.  A white-hot slice of agony lanced up his side, but he couldn’t think about that now! He pushed ALL his newfound strength into the hot, flowing pulse that soaked his fan, nothing in his brain but to end this fight once and for all…!

Then, in a swipe and an arc of blood spattering high into the air, Danny lost his balance, resistance lost.  He gasped and dropped his fan, grasping at the air…

Vlad’s arm wrapped around him and yanked him back from the edge.

Danny collapsed into his lover’s grip, trembling in the fiery agony that pierced his body.  “Vlad…!” he whispered.  A heavy, hairy object hit the ground beside them, hot blood flowing out of it in pulses; Vlad grabbed it and threw it away from them.  “He--”

“Shhhh, it’s okay…” Vlad whispered.  He tore off a section of his long red kimono and folded it into a pad, pressing it hard against Danny’s bleeding side; the jagged sword had only grazed him.  “He can’t hurt you anymore...”

Danny nodded, eyes slipping shut as he pressed his face into Vlad’s neck, desperately seeking some form of comfort as both the pain and the memory of the experience bled through his mind.  It was silent for a moment, the only sound reaching his ears were that of his lover’s heart beat… until something else broke the quiet.

“What happened?  Are they okay?”

“Is he dead?”

“Where’s the prince?!”

Danny slowly raised his head, turning around towards the edge of the balcony with wide eyes.

“Where is Prince Danwei??”

“Prince Danwei!”

Danny sucked in a breath, turning his big blue eyes up to look up at Vlad as the people below began to call out his name, the sound rising in volume as it became a chant.  “V-Vlad…"

The general smiled kindly, understanding the prince’s confusion and overwhelmed state.  Gently, he picked the prince up, holding him close to his chest, and approached the balcony edge.  The prince was taken aback as roars and cheers of approval rose up to greet them as the Chinese people laid eyes once more on their wounded, but ALIVE prince.

A gentle, gnarled hand rested on Vlad’s shoulder.  “Well done,” Clockwork murmured.

Vlad started.  “Your eminence!”

A band of advisers rushed up behind the three of them.  “Your eminence, you shouldn’t be up here!” they clamored.  “It is soiled with the blood of--!”

“The blood of my grandson,” Clockwork growled, narrowing his eyes at them.  “Begone.”

The advisers gaped like fish, only to be pushed past by Dash, Kwan, Tucker, and the three princesses.  “DAN!”

Danny perked up when he saw them, waving weakly.  “Hey, are you guys okay?"

“We should be asking YOU that, you numbskull!”  Dash and Jazz shouted as one.

They stared at each other a moment… then joined the others in rushing close to Vlad’s side.  They talked over each other loudly, asking what had happened, was he okay, was Vlad okay, what happened to Pariah?!

Danny could only blink up at them, too overwhelmed and in shock to really answer.  Vlad pushed them aside, cradling the prince close, as he walked over to the Emperor.  Clockwork smiled down at his tired, injured grandson, and placed a gentle hand on his head reassuringly.  Danny met his smile, and watched as the Emperor turned to face the now silent crowd below.

Clockwork spread his hands.  “My children!”

His old, regal voice rang clearly over the courtyard.  Everything went quiet.  

“The war is OVER!  Prince Danwei, my grandson, ended it with his very hands!!”

Deafening cheers roared from the crowd.  Danny swallowed, clinging to Vlad, but the general stroked his snowy hair reassuringly as the emperor went on.  “It has come to my attention that I have needed to choose an heir for a long time, and it has become none more so apparent that it did tonight.  Therefore, I have chosen Danwei to be my successor!  However!”

Clockwork beckoned Danny forward.  The boy glanced up at Vlad, then at his grandfather, and limped over to join him at the rail.  “While he is brave, selfless, and skilled in combat, he wishes for another to share the throne with him,” the emperor declared.

He took Danny’s hand.  “Tonight, I can proudly announce the betrothal of my beloved grandson to General Vladimir Masters!”

Danny looked down at the crowd fretfully, trying his best to keep the fear of rejection showing on his face.  The people below were silent for a long time, and the little prince began to shrink in on himself…

But then.

“Long live the Emperor!  Long live Prince Danwei!”

“LONG LIVE PRINCE DANWEI!!”

A loud round of applause and cheers broke out from the crowd.  The prince’s eyes widened as he heard shouts of his name, of his grandfather's name, even of VLAD’S name, ringing through the huge courtyard.  Tears sprang to his eyes and a tiny hand came up to cover his mouth as the people, HIS people, BOWED before him over and over again, crying out good wishes and long life and a happy marriage.  

The poor boy leaned back into Vlad’s chest as fireworks suddenly lit up the sky, beaming up at their brilliance...

 

~*~*~*~*~

One month later, the sky rained with multicolored lights once more as the Emperors Vladimir and Danwei stood, newly wed and newly crowned -- hands intertwined with a red silk tie, Danny radiant in white, Vlad stunning in scarlet with the golden emperor’s headpieces gleaming in the light of the fireworks.  Their friends and family cheered and clapped and toasted to their reign.  Never letting go of each other, the new royals stood to receive their well-wishers, looking over the party with a welling sense of pride… and love.

“Hey, butt towel!”

Danny glanced around, spotting the source just as Kwan smacked Dash’s shoulder sternly.  “You can’t SAY that anymore, idiot!” the big boy scolded.

“Oh, fine.  Emperor Butt Towel!” Dash called, waving.  “Over here~!”

Danny laughed softly at the other men’s antics.  Kwan, now Danny’s royal bodyguard, just shook his head in apology at Danny and turned back around to resume his conversation with Sam.  Those two seemed to be hitting it off quite nicely.  

The newly crowned little emperor leaned up to kiss Vlad’s cheek gently, promising to return soon, and stepped down from the dais towards Dash.

“Enjoying the party, officer hundan~?”

Dash laughed and gave him a little bow.  “I actually am, your eminence!” he replied.  The man had dressed in all black for the past month, out of respect and mourning for Star, but his back was straight and his shoulders were strong.  Compared to when Danny had first met him, there was a slightly older look in his eye.  Maybe a bit wiser.  “But hey, I’ll be Commander Hundan soon if I have anything to say about it~”

Danny beamed, placing a hand on the man’s arm and squeezing it happily.  “Oh, that’s wonderful, Dash!  I’m so happy for you!”

The boy turned to look out over the happy gathering of people; Tucker and Lin were flirting in the corner, Sam and Jazmine were chatting, occasionally casting glances over at Kwan and Dash.  Even Damien and Valerie had been invited!  He could see the brown-skinned woman bringing a drink over to one of his own handmaidens -- one with shy blue eyes and long, dark hair.  Danny smiled serenely, finally at peace with himself and his destiny.  

He glanced up at Dash, chuckling lightly.  “So, you think I’m cut out for all this?  It’s a tad… overwhelming…”

Dash thought about it for a moment, then nodded.  “To be honest, yeah!” he told him.  “You’ve really grown into it.  You were a great soldier, Dan, but you were never a killer, so I really do think this is the best place for you.  Not to mention, the general’s happier than I’ve ever seen him!”

Danny turned to glance up at the general, now emperor, with contented, lidded eyes.  It was nice to hear from others that Vlad looked happy today, happy to be married, to HIM.  He blushed and smiled when Vlad caught his eye, a giddy feeling swelling up in his chest.  He had to turn away before he broke out into giggles and turned redder than a lobster.

“It’s hard to believe sometimes, you know?”  he whispered, still smiling.  “That I’m emperor now… that I’m MARRIED… to a man I love, no less!”

He smiled up at Dash, radiant in his joy.  “I never thought I could be this happy!”

Dash patted Danny’s shoulder, grinning at him.  “You deserve it, kiddo.  Oh, and uh, hey~”

He leaned down to whisper in his ear.  “If you guys want to sneak away for a bit, I’ll cover for you.”

Danny blushed, looking over at Vlad from under his lashes as the older man seemed to watch him with keen, dark eyes.  He fidgeted, fingers nervously playing with the hem of his elegant white wedding robes.  It really had been an awfully long month…

“Y-yeah?”  he whispered back, shuffling in embarrassment.  “That um… that might be nice.  It’s… been awhile, since we were last alone…”

“Excellent.  Mush, butt towel~!”

Danny laughed and beat a hasty retreat, making a beeline for Vlad as the big blonde went to engage the adviser’s attention with a few bawdy jokes.  Vlad chuckled as Danny came up to him with a big grin on his face.  “What are we doing?” he asked.  “You look excited!”

“We’re making an early escape!”  Danny concluded, taking the bigger man’s hand in his and pulling him along as he headed for a side passage near the thrones.  His cheeks were flushed a pretty shade of pink as he smiled up at the man sweetly.  “I haven’t been alone with you for over a MONTH!  We’re married now, it’s official, and I want to spend some time with my husband~”

“Of course, my love~”

Vlad kissed the boy’s hand as they disappeared into the shadows.  “You may have me for the rest of our lives~”

 

~*~*~*~

 

Ancient China, a land full of magic and mystery and myth.  A land of flowers bloomed in adversity, of pride and enemies and hate, of sacrifice and friendship and love.  However, this tale is no myth, for it did happen once…

A long, long time ago…

 


	16. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The wedding night~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SOME MORE SMUT, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

Night fell quickly over the palace, and while many stayed to continue feasting and drinking and partying in the newly crowned and wed Emperors’ names, said emperors had long retired.  Young Danwei had left his new husband alone in their chambers with the servants in order to relax and disrobe, while he himself had been whisked away by his hand maidens to have his elaborate wedding garb removed.  The head dress, robes, and jewels were soon removed and locked away in his wardrobe for safe keeping, leaving him bare as he stepped into the warm bath, scented with sweet smelling oils.  The young emperor remained as still as possible as one of his hand maidens helped bathe and wash him.

Danny was practically shaking with nerves and excitement.  This would be the first night alone with his love for over a month now.  They had been too busy to find a moment of privacy with each other, and of course it was not seen as very proper until after the wedding.  So now, just the mere thought of Vlad as his husband, waiting for him in THEIR chambers, had the boy’s cheeks flaming pink.  

Finally, he stepped out of the tub and was patted dry, his hair gently combed and braided.  He was then dressed in loose, billowing silk robes, soft and light to the touch.  They were dyed a deep, royal purple, his fair skin and hair standing out sharply against the rich color.  The slightly large robes trailed across the ground as he walked, adding an air of elegance to such a simple ensemble.  

Danny hesitated behind the curtains that led from the bathroom to his new chambers, taking a deep breath before gliding in.  

The room was cast in a warm glow for all the numerous candles, casting gold and red and purple hues of light all around through the gauzy curtains.  He blinked in surprise to find that Vlad was actually not in the room, but a noise outside in the adjacent hall alerted him that Vlad was likely finishing up changing himself.  The young emperor relaxed slightly, then moved towards the large bed near the far side of the room, concealed in sheer curtains.  He climbed on top of it, and settled himself in the middle, purple silk pooling out around him as he waited demurely for his husband to return…

Finally, the doors creaked open.  Vlad sighed, eyes cast down as he walked back in – then he glanced up and started.

“…Danwei…” he murmured.

The older man’s dark eyes wandered over his young bride’s body, gaze lingering on his pale, flawless skin and beautiful face…

Danny blushed pink and squirmed a little under his husband’s gaze, causing one large sleeve to slide from a white shoulder.  He blinked in surprise and reached for it, shyly pulling it back into place.  He glanced up at Vlad under his snowy lashes, fingers fidgeting where they lay in his lap.

“Vlad…”  he greeted softly, moving clumsily to pull back the silk sheets, welcoming his husband into their marital bed.  

Vlad smiled and accepted the invitation.  Danny reached out for him as he crawled slowly onto the bed; the older man sighed wistfully at the touch of his slender, pale hands, leaning into the young male’s palm.  “It feels like it’s been so long…” Vlad murmured.  

He held Danny’s cheeks, kissing him tenderly.

Danwei sighed, lips parting sweetly under the older man’s.  His cheeks flushed redder as a tongue slid into play, teasing his own and making him moan.  He finally pulled back, panting softly for air as he pressed his forehead into Vlad’s.

“It’s been over a month, my love.  But it feels like so much longer.  Ever since that night…”  he ducked his head, squirming again.  “Ever since then, I’ve been… dreaming of you…”

Vlad smiled, a glint of mischief in his eye.  “Oh, have you, little one…?”

The boy flushed further, whining quietly under those dark eyes.  “S-so what if I h-have!  I had just obtained a l-lover, and then… then I wasn’t even allowed to be alone in the same ROOM as you…”

He pressed into Vlad’s hands, clumsily crawling into his lap, sliding on the slippery silks.  “I’ve missed you…”

Vladimir’s gaze went soft.

His rough hand slid down over his lover’s shoulder – gently pulling the dark violet silk away from his creamy skin.  “And I you…” he whispered.  He took hold of Danny’s jaw and raised it, sealing his mouth over the boy’s a second time….

Soft sighs and low, deep moans left the slender body in his grasp, as Vlad eased Danny from his rich silk robe, folded it, and placed it down on the floor.  The beautiful nude body of the prince – no, emperor – practically glowed; his skin white and smooth as porcelain, warm with life, soft as velvet and silk under his hands.  The older man groaned longingly, running his hands worshipfully down to Danwei’s hips.  It had been a long time for him, too…

Danny had forgotten how big his lover’s hands were, big and warm and rough with calluses.  They touched him so gently, so eagerly, making him sigh and moan and arch into each pass of those large palms and fingers.  When they settled around his hips, squeezing gently, he couldn’t help but groan and grind down into Vlad’s lap, his young cock already becoming erect.  He shivered as his heated skin glided against his husband’s own silk robe, the sensation so new it had his hips stuttering and a surprised whimper slipping past his lips.  

He reached up to tangle his fingers in his husband’s long hair, gazing up at him with an adoring and lustful gaze.  “Vlad…”

Vlad kissed him, smiling down at him, and stroked his shoulders.  “Lay back…”

Danny shivered, fingers tightening their hold for a moment, before he obeyed.  His legs shook as he slid down from Vlad’s lap and laid on the large bed, stretched out on his back.  His flush spread down his cheeks to his chest, staining the pale flesh pink as he gasped softly, darkening eyes locked with his husband’s.  Vlad’s gaze was hot with anticipation as he began to take off his own red silk robe, more and more of his own muscular body put on display.  Danny sighed at the sight, his little tongue darting out to moisten his lips…

The ex-general’s robe piled onto the floor, red beside violet.

Vlad slipped in between Danny’s legs, lips curved in an impish smile as he made a show of settling above him.  The boy’s breath seemed to catch in his throat as he was suddenly engulfed under Vlad’s much larger form, making him feel suddenly much smaller and fragile…

“Why are you so BIG?”  he pouted, only to nearly swallow his tongue when Vlad pretty much lay on top of him.  His gasps came out faster as he felt his lover’s heat reach his skin, making him arch almost desperately to try and touch, to press their bodies close together.  Danny reached up for his husband, reaching to wrap one arm around his shoulders while the other went above his head, gripping the pillow tightly.  He couldn’t stop the buck and squirm of his hips; his cock lay hot and heavy against his belly, pulsing in need.

“Ah… ah!”

Vlad chuckled, gripping Danwei’s bucking hips.  “Patience…” he murmured, firmly but lovingly pinning them down against the sheets.

“Vlad…!”

The older emperor smirked and lay a finger on Danny’s lips.  His bride looked up at him with impatient blue eyes.  “Patience,” Vlad repeated.

His hand slipped down the boy’s chin, to his chest… and then between them.  

Danny gasped, hips hitching.  “VLAD!”

The quiet sounds of a rough palm stroking and fondling much softer, sensitive skin filled the air.  “Shhhhhhh~”

Danny whined and squirmed, but under Vlad’s much stronger hold, there was little he could really do.  He gripped tight to the pillows and tight to his husband’s shoulders, whimpering into the older man’s ears as the strokes sped up.  A pearl of precum bubbled up from the slit, and slid down his shaft, easing the way for Vlad’s strokes.  

Faster…. faster… ROUGHER–

“V-Vlad!  AH~!”  his head tilted back with a wanton cry, pleasure mounting in his veins.  He bit down on his bottom lip hard, trying to hold off his impending orgasm.  “W-wait!  AH!”

His hands flew up from the pillows to instead wrap around Vlad’s neck, pulling him down closer as he gasped into his ear.  “P-please… I… I want, ah… I want you inside… I–AH!”

Blood rushed south at the desperation in his bride’s voice.

Vlad let go, panting.  “Turn over…”

Danwei obeyed eagerly, breathing heavily and gazing back at the older man, making sure he would follow through.  Normally, Vlad would have teased him a bit longer, but even he was getting impatient; his bride’s body was so slender and warm and willing…

The older emperor parted Danny’s legs, slipping two fingers into his mouth – eyes on that red, puckered entrance.

There was a long moment of silence and at first Danny wondered if Vlad was taking his fill of the view.  He blushed at the thought, mouth opening to voice his protest at having to wait, only to gasp as the tip of a warm, wet finger brushed against his hole.  He trembled, hands fisting in the silk sheets as it petted and circled the puckered flesh, making it wet and shiny and so red, softening under Vlad’s touch.

“Ah… ah… OH~!”

Danny spread his legs a little wider, desperately trying to beckon the finger in further.  He groaned as the very tip slid in, toying with his entrance as it clung to the finger, trying to suck it in.

“P-please, stop t-teasing me– AHH!”

His back arched as Vlad thrust the whole finger in, sinking in to the third knuckle with one stroke.  His mouth fell open as he keened, hips pressing back as he already felt a second finger pet at his entrance, nudging in alongside the first.  “Y-yes, yes~!  AH~!!”

Vlad felt the tense, pulsing squeeze of Danny’s walls around his fingers, and pushed the second finger in.  He groaned and leaned down, drawing his tongue all the way up the boy’s back – relishing the salty taste of his gleaming flesh.  

“Ahhnn~!”  the boy cried.  He spread his legs as far as they could go and bucked back against his fingers, aching for more.  

“P-please… more!  I–AHHN~!”

Another finger slid in, moving with the others to stretch him wide and loose and wet.  He shuddered and grit his teeth when his prostate was found and petted, stroked almost tenderly in contrast to his violent shakes and wanton cries.  “V-VLAD!”

Vlad scissored his fingers inside Danny, stretching the rings of muscle just so…

Then, he gently pulled them from the boy.  The younger emperor gasped and looked back, grasping at him, only to cry out even louder when the head of that thick, hard organ began to press in.  “P-Please, AHH!”

Bowing his head, Vlad let his forehead rest against Danny’s back, panting as those hot, soft walls closed around his shaft.  “Danwei… nnnn…!”

Danny released a breath he hadn’t noticed he was holding when that large cock finally bottomed out.  He was clenching and spasming around Vlad in intervals, crying out every time he inadvertently squeezed down.  He pressed his cheek into the pillow he was hugging tight to his chest; a shiver raced down his spine from the familiar, but still so new feeling of having Vlad so deep inside of him.

“Ahnn… mnn…”  he moaned softly, slowly moving his hips now that he was used to the full feeling once more.  He gasped as Vlad sunk in another quarter inch, causing his hips to buck and–

“AH-AHHHnnn~!”  a squeal escaped him as his prostate was struck, sending shocks of pleasure up his spine and causing him to clench down tight on his husband’s cock.  He moaned wantonly, pressing back snug against the older man’s pelvis as he gasped for more.  

His husband was only too happy to acquiesce.

“Ah… AH… AH!  AH AH!”

Danny’s snowy hair swayed forward, his soft mouth gaping in pleasure as the smack of skin on skin filled the air.  Vlad’s breath grew harsher, his grip harder, his balls drawing tighter with each time he fully sheathed himself inside his bride.  He tossed his long hair out of his face and sat up – mouth open and eyes falling closed as he pulled Danny’s clenching ass up and down, slapping into him faster and losing himself to the sensation…

Danny was reduced to keens and cries of pleasure, any words simply escaping his mental capacity.  He reached back and clung to any part of Vlad he could reach, eyes rolling back when Vlad thrust in particularly hard, nailing his prostate and making him shudder.  He wouldn’t be able to last much longer.  It had been far too long since they had been able to even touch…

Blue eyes fluttered open wide as the thrusts suddenly came faster, harder!  Vlad was all but ruthless as he laid into the smaller body, forcing Danny to take it and take it ALL.  

“AH AH AHHH!  AHHHNNN!!!”

A wailing keen filled the air as Danny felt the pleasure flood through him, curling in his lower belly and making his back arch, his toes curl.  So close, so close!

Vlad gasped, fingers digging into Danny’s hips, and slammed the boy down – bottoming out as he finished.  Hot seed spilled into the young emperor, squeezing out around the elder’s girth.  “V-Vlad!”  the boy finally managed to gasp, shuddering through his own orgasm.  His young cock twitched as spurts of cum landed on the bedding below, staining the silk sheets.  Danny moaned softly, insides still spasming around Vlad’s own twitching cock as he slowly came down from the high of his climax, coasting in the afterglow.

“Mnn… nn…”  

Vlad breathed heavily, chest heaving, a blissful smile on his lips, and a silent roar of blood in his ears.  He leaned down to kiss Danny’s back – his big hand coming forward to hold the young man’s neck.  “Feel better…?” he chuckled.

A soft sound met his ears, like a breathless giggle.  “Mnn… Very~”

Sated blue eyes blinked up at him over a flushed shoulder as Danny stretched, purring at the feel of his husband still deep inside him.  He felt warm and wanted like this, with Vlad pressed to his back, covering him completely and marking him so deeply.  

“And you, my husband~?”  he asked sweetly, squeezing purposely around Vlad’s softening cock.  

The low growl and sultry grin was a good enough answer for him.  Danny laughed breathlessly, then yelped as Vlad flipped him over.  A long, sultry moan filled the air…

It seemed he would not be getting any sleep on his wedding night~


End file.
